My Adventure with Moemon: The Celadon Wars
by sarsars
Summary: The second part of Arthur's adventure through Kanto. After reaching Celadon City, Arthur finds himself separated from his Moemon and thrust into a civil war between the city's three gangs. By attempting to escape the chaos and find his friends and family, he learns stories of the past and makes his mark on the future.
1. Prologue

Alright, Sis! New day means a new part of this adventure! I did a lot of thinking last night, gathered my thoughts, and I think I'm prepared to tell you what happened. I'll be honest: this isn't going to be easy. The shit that I went through in those few days is going to be with me for a long time.

Things are going to moving much faster today. A lot happened in not much time. But since I know you have trouble remembering things, I'm going to give you a quick recap. Sound good to you? Great!

My Statistics class was transported to Kanto yesterday. We ended up in the region ten years after the first generation and eight years after the second generation. This was also a Kanto in which Pokémon never existed. In their place were Moemon: human girls who had most of the characteristics of Pokémon, including dressing like them. My twenty-nine classmates and I were told that we were Challengers: special trainers who had to follow very specific rules.

We could only catch the first Moemon we find on a route, we had to name all of our Moemon, and if our Moemon lose all their health, they die. There was a lot of confusion and debate about the morals of using the little girls to fight. In the end, even the most obstinate were persuaded to take their Moemon with them, and so we all began our journey. Our challenge was to beat the Elite Four, to be the first Challengers ever to succeed.

Of course, nothing is ever straight forward. There was a hidden rule: a consequence of this being a Nuzlocke Run for us. Once we lost all our Moemon, we were eliminated from the challenge and disappeared in a flash of white light. A few fell on the journey to the first Gym Leader, Brock, although even more were defeated by the man himself. That first guy I mentioned yesterday – Jacob, the asshole who attacked me before this whole thing – challenged me to a battle, but my Moemon overpowered his. Another classmate, Nick, challenged Quinton, and lost. This made us threats early on, and that came into play once we reached Vermilion City.

While in Pewter, we encountered our first Bounty Hunter. The Bounty Hunters were an organization who held bounties on Challengers' teams. One million yen for each person who eliminated a Challenger. That first Bounty Hunter – Hunter M – waltzed into Pewter City, challenged one of us to a battle, defeated her, and vanished from the country. Another - Hunter X – wanted to challenge me at the right moment. He followed me through the cities and watched me. He mentioned an attack that'd happen soon, and that when my watch started flashing, I'd know when it would happen.

We found an abandoned lab near Mt. Moon and another near the Rock Tunnel. Each one had reports on psychic research and mentioned strange purple crystals. While traveling through Mt. Moon, we discovered a secret mining operation. Endangering all of our lives, Nick snuck into the base and stole a box filled with useless information and one of the large purple crystals. He made it into Cerulean City before the miners found up, and by getting the local police involved they bullied the stolen goods out of Nick. Unbeknownst to them, Drew broke off a small piece of the crystal, keeping it hidden. Based on their brutal tactics and influence, we suspected that the long-defunct Team Rocket was behind the digging and experiments. We had no physical proof, but we had reason to believe they were a bigger problem than they appeared.

In Cerulean City, we learned about the city's corruption and the mysterious, suspicious conspiracy behind Magenta Town, a town funded by an undisclosed source. We also got our first mention of the Celadon War which had happened before we arrived, as well as the three gangs that fought in the city: The Mewtwo's Apostles, the Celadon Saviors, and the Kanto Kings. One of my Moemon recommended I read about the history of the Celadon War, which I took a great interest in only just before we entered Celadon City.

In Vermilion City, we met the kind, generous Mayor Porter who welcomed us gladly into the city. I had an awful experience with officials in Cerulean City. I was arrested at gunpoint. So, I was suspicious of all city officials, and I mistrusted him and anyone who liked him. One of my classmates, Eric, had no such mistrust; he looked up to Mayor Porter. Eric and I had several arguments about his relationship with the mayor, but he ignored my points. When I heard that Eric told him valuable secrets about us, I snapped. I challenged Eric to a Moemon battle. One of the worst things I ever did. I beat him at a substantial cost. I lost the friendship of my classmates, the safety and security they provided, and the respect of my Moemon. Quinton and I had to abandon the others for fear of the lives of our Moemon.

Quinton and I traveled to Lavender Town alone, a town filled with tourists who were visiting the town's newly constructed amusement park. Wanting to escape the congested place, we went to the Rock Tunnel. We discovered that Celebi was trapped in a destroyed room in the mountain. We freed her and learned that she'd been subjected to the draining power of the purple crystals, which weakened her to the point of collapse. The cave had been destroyed by the Ghost Moemon who had been relocated from the Moemon Tower. The scientists had been kidnapping their friends and using the crystals on them, and they wanted revenge.

Celebi led us out of the caves to thank us and disappeared, and we discovered that a Bounty Hunter had been following us. Hunter G asked us about Celebi, and when we refused to answer, she battled Quinton. Quinton, however, noticed that she didn't have the resolve to kill and tried to use it to his advantage. The battle was forfeited when one of Quinton's Moemon died, and after the battle Hunter G decided to quit being a Bounty Hunter and gave us information about the sixteen Bounty Hunters we had to deal with.

With nothing else keeping us in Lavender Town, we moved on to Celadon City. Before reaching the Underground Path, we met up with Mayor Porter and Eric, who'd become his new assistant. Mayor Porter explained that he was visiting the city to show his support after the harsh times they'd been through. The city's elementary school – thankfully unoccupied – had been blown up a week before, and the city was in disarray trying to find out who had done it.

That was where I left off yesterday. Everything important that had happened to me, summarized as well as I could. But there were just… so many Moemon collected in a short amount of time. I'll tell you about my team, because that's what really matters. My starter was my Charmander, Christine, a determined, feisty girl who wanted to become Champions. That was her one goal. My first catch was a Starly, Stacy, who was my best fighter, most confident, composed, and mysterious of all of my Moemon. She had a clear connection with Celadon City, but she refused to tell me. My second catch was a Mankey, Mandy, a competitive, snarky girl who I was forced to catch to save her from Garang, another of my classmates.

In Vermilion Forest, we found a Budew attempting to guard her home from defenders. We cornered her and caught her and named her Rose. She was polite, dignified, and wore a Sun Stone on her head as a crown. Garang challenged Brock before he was ready, but he managed to run away before he lost his starter. He entrusted her to me, and that's how I caught the Oshawott, Olivia. Beginning, she was kind and motherly, but once she evolved – likely influenced by Mandy and Christine – she grew a sarcastic, joking side that only grew as we did. In Mt. Moon, we encountered a very timid, cautious Aron. We loved her immediately and added Annie to the team.

But we had losses along the way as well. In Vermilion Forest, I caught a Caterpie who I named Beauty, but she was ambushed by a Venipede and poisoned. I tried to run to safety, but I didn't get there in time. After Pewter City, I caught a Kricketot who I named Kris, but she was also ambushed by a Rattata. And when I challenged Eric, one of those substantial losses I didn't mention was Mandy. I lost her, and Olivia lost her eye in the battle.

It took a while for me to catch Mandy's replacement. I encountered a Venipede outside Vermilion City, but it was too soon after the battle, and I couldn't bring myself to catch her. The final Moemon I caught outside Rock Tunnel. Bailey, the Banette, was a huge problem. She was disturbing, sadistic, and downright demonic. I debated releasing her before even leaving Lavender Town, but I resolved to keep her until I found someone more agreeable.

Quinton's Moemon were his starter – a Metang he called Melody- who'd lost her entire family because of Team Rocket's construction in Mt. Moon. She used to be a very shy girl, but she grew quickly, and so did her immense psychic power. He captured Wendy, a Quagsire, who was strange and quirky; Willow, a Sudowoodo, who was calm and quiet; Mary, a Flaaffy, who was excitable and eccentric; and Lucia, a Lucario, who'd been abandoned in the lab outside Pewter City. Lucia was mistrustful at first, but they grew a special bond that allowed her to evolve after protecting Quinton from a terrifying attack.

Although Eric lost the Moemon battle, and my team killed his entire team, he wasn't eliminated. He had a single baby Moemon left in the PC: a kind and gentle Drowzee he had named Helen. He kept Helen safe in her battle, refusing to battle anymore.

I stopped yesterday's story just before entering the city. The four of us were escorted by the police to Mayor Porter's speech. I stopped there for a reason. What happened in the following days was a substantial shift in the way I perceived the Kanto region and my potential influence. Challengers were extremely special; Bounty Hunters weren't our only attention. I soon learned that past Challengers could be important factors in the shifting political structure of the region. At the time, I didn't care. But after experiencing those few days, I had to care.

Get ready, Sis, because today you're going to experience the Celadon Wars.


	2. Chapter 1: The Speech

We entered Celadon City around midafternoon. Quinton, the lone classmate who still supported me, was by my side keeping his Moemon close by his. His Melody was latched onto his arm, her face filled with fear; she could sense pain and misery all around. His other Moemon craned their necks looking up at the giant skyscrapers that completely dwarfed us. Their eyes were filled with wonder.

My own Moemon surrounded me. Christine walked by my other side, pulling my arm to get my attention and pointing at everything she saw. Stacy walked ahead, her eyes pointed at a single building off in the distance. Rose was a step behind me holding little Annie in her arms and keeping an eye on Olivia, who was unconsciously rubbing her eye and struggling to keep in step. Bailey was trailing behind, disinterested with everything.

Eric walked awkwardly behind us, his lone Moemon safely in her ball to keep her from being seen by unwanted eyes. He couldn't walk with Mayor Porter, who was at the front talking joyfully with Chief Harmen, so he simply kept as far away from the rest of us as he could.

Surrounding us were a dozen policemen, all of whom wore identical blue uniforms and marching neatly in step. Guns were in their holsters and radios clipped on their belts. They were all strong, tall, and imposing men. Their eyes were darting around looking for suspicious behavior. One must have seen something, because as soon as we entered the city he whispered into his radio, his eyes focused on his target.

Most of the city was filled with rows and rows of buildings aligned in grid pattern. Numerous side streets branched off from the main road piercing through the center of the city. Nearly every building was several stories tall, although a half dozen buildings scattered across the city completely dominated the others. One in the distance was the city's Department Store; another was a massive hotel; several others seemed to be the headquarters of the region's important corporations. Walking underneath them on ground level gave an unpleasant feeling of inferiority.

Where there weren't buildings, there were sidewalks and streets and little room for anything else. The sidewalks were filled with people, and the streets were filled with cars. Everything sans a few select buildings were various shades of red, blue, and green. Everything was grouped according to color. People in blue were with people in blue; red cars were parked next to red cars. There was so little overlap it was unsettling. Celadon City's three distinctive gangs were so powerful that they influenced the personalities of their districts.

At the entrance, we were immediately hit with blue cars, blue clothes, and blue buildings. This was the territory of the Mewtwo's Apostles. As if not obvious from the name, this district was the most like a religion. People wore blue robes that covered their entire bodies, smiled pleasantly at us as we passed, and made small hand gestures as they passed beneath the city's cathedral. The dark-blue gothic, archaic structure was one of the most imposing; several stone statues of rock Moemon stood on its four barbed towers and watched over all corners of the eastern part of the city. As we passed underneath it, I felt as though I was being closely observed. Not by the statues, although their soulless eyes certainly didn't ease my suspicions, but by something inside.

Moving through the city, the hues of blue shifted immediately to hues of red. Clothing changed from robes to hoodies and torn jeans. Several walls were marked with graffiti advertising the Celadon Saviors and their… radical beliefs. Messages were sprawled proclaiming that humans were the superior species and Moemon should remain subordinate like they've been throughout history. The buildings were worn down, the streets dirty and rough, the trash cans overflowing. We gathered closer together protectively, trying to avoid the judging eyes following us.

The most unique building in this territory was the casino. Its bright neon sign was shining even before the sun began to set, producing a pink glow that illuminated the gamblers below. Right next to the casino was a small shop with a single man sitting behind a barred window protected by bulletproof glass. A single slot at the bottom of the window allowed goods to be exchanged. The man himself looked bored, surveying the streets for potential customers.

Then just as soon as the red began, it ended and was replaced with green. The territory of the Kanto Kings covered nearly half of Celadon City, and a lot of the more important buildings were under its reach. Mayor Porter recommended that we all wear shades of green, so I felt more comfortable here than in either of the other territories. The rebuilt police station stood near the eastern edge of the territory, close to the center of the city. The Department Store was further west, its front entrance packed with green suits and ties. A large parking garage was next door, although it was one of the few locations where a variety of colored cars were parked. Even the parking garage was sectioned off; green cars were closest to the store, blues were in the middle, and reds were farthest away.

Although we passed hundreds of people on our short tour through the main street of the city, they were insignificant compared to the giant crowd we were approaching. The noise was unbearable; the cacophony of constant shouting and arguing and screaming forced us to cover our ears before we had even seen the audience. When we turned the corner, and the nearest in red turned around and saw us, they started to boo. Then more and more turned, and cheers quickly covered the objectors.

Thousands of people crowded a giant park. They were surrounded by dozens of police officers keeping people from fighting and causing trouble. They had looked calm the few seconds before the crowd noticed us, but when it started to cheer and boo and bounce in excitement, the police noticeably panicked. A few kept hands at their sides hovered over their pistols.

Chief Harmen, the tough black chief of police whose grizzled features and tired eyes gave him the impression of wanting nothing more than for this event to be over, led our escort into a nearby building quickly, practically running to get us away. I was forced to follow, absolutely dumbfounded why we were so terrified of the crowd. They were loud, sure, but they were excited to see us!

The doors closed behind us, somehow muffling the shouting to a dull roar. Chief Harmen took off his hat and wiped sweat off his brow. The other officers fanned out and checked the other rooms. We found ourselves in a thin corridor with a pair of rooms on each side. A wooden staircase took up most of the corridor. Another door to the outside stood in front of us, no doubt leading to another side street.

"That was a shit show," he muttered, shaking his head. "I wasn't expecting a crowd that large this early. Speech isn't for another hour."

"Another hour?" Eric repeated in disbelief. "What are we supposed to do until then?"

"The plan," Chief Harmen replied, annoyed. "Was to give you all a tour of the main square and a debriefing of the speech. Of course, with so many people gathered already, the tour can't happen. You'll be staying here until the speech begins."

"Why can't we leave?" I asked.

"No Moemon are allowed," he replied. He noticed my confusion. "You saw all those people. Those Kings, those Saviors, those Apostles; they're always fighting. Always trying to control this city. We're doing our damnedest to stop them, but there are so many of them it's impossible to get them all. Those are some of my best men out there, and even they won't be able to keep the peace for long.

"Moemon are a touchy subject to these gangs. Some want them to be equals, some want them to be servants, and some want them to be superior. Nobody agrees on anything, and when they disagree they get violent. To prevent that, to keep this thing as peaceful as it could possibly be, all Moemon – no matter what – are banned. It wasn't popular, but it was necessary.

"So yeah, your Moemon can stay here in this building if they want. If they can somehow sneak past my guards and disguise themselves as human, they can hide in the crowd. Or they stay in their balls. I don't care what, so long as they're out of sight and out of danger."

I stood processing this information. None of our Moemon looked pleased. Mayor Porter placed a hand on my shoulder, and when I turned he was smiling understandingly.

"He's just doing what he thinks is best," he explained. "I know it's a sacrifice, but it will only be a temporary one."

I felt someone else tap my other shoulder. Stacy still looked determined. "How long will we be staying here?"

"Until the speech is over, I guess," I said. "I'd come back here as soon as I could, and then we'd be gone."

"I'll treat you all to dinner afterward," said Mayor Porter. "As thanks for accompanying me."

"Can we not leave through the back entrance?" Stacy turned to Chief Harmen.

The Police Chief looked at her suspiciously. "It's being guarded by three of my men. Are you planning on leaving?"

"No," she replied thoughtfully. "I wanted to be sure that this building was safe."

"It's safe," he confirmed. "There's a television in the room over there if you want to watch the speech here. My men will keep you safe, prevent anyone from entering."

A crackling voice came from his radio asking for him, so he held a finger up to quiet us and walked into another room. I turned to Mayor Porter once he'd gone.

"Be honest, how bad is this place?" I asked. "Is it worse than Cerulean City?"

"It is bad in its own way," Mayor Porter replied. "It does not have the corruption of Cerulean City; its police are some of the most hard-working men I know. Chief Harmen in particular only wants peace. It is not as unanimously Moemon-hating as Cerulean City is, either. This city has some of those people, but they are the minority.

"Celadon City's problems lie in its diversity. The three gangs dominate all aspects of society, censoring those who suggest alternatives and fighting those who disagree. They resort to violence constantly; there are reports of attacks every week, although those are limited to small raids on existing territory. They have been fighting for nearly a decade, and the fighting has never stopped."

He noted the concern on my face, and he chuckled to himself. "They do not unanimously hate you Challengers. In fact, I would say that Challengers are somewhat celebrated here. I use that term loosely. They all see Challengers as spokespersons for their ideas. You will no doubt garner some attention, but it would not be enough to get you in trouble. You'll be safe here."

That was what I wanted to hear. I nodded. "You're sure we'll be safe."

"If you want, I could suggest to Harmen to provide you with a constant escort while you're in the city. It would make you more conspicuous, but it would be safer."

"Thanks, but we don't want an escort. Just as long as we're safe here. We won't be here long, anyway. A few days at most."

"Of course," Mayor Porter nodded. "I'm going to see if Chief Harmen has any other concerns. I'll leave you with your Moemon." He disappeared into the other room, leaving just us and our Moemon.

Quinton sat at the foot of the stairs patting Melody's shoulder. "My Moemon have all agreed to stay in the building until the speech is over. What about yours?"

"I haven't asked," I admitted. I smirked, noting the touch of nervousness on his face. "Aren't you excited for the speech?"

"I don't do well in crowds," Quinton sighed.

"Neither do I. Good think we'll be on stage for all of them to see."

"I don't know if I'll be able to handle looking at them. That is the largest crowd I've ever seen."

"They don't care about us," I reminded him. "Don't draw attention to yourself, and you won't even be there."

"How many people will be on stage?" Quinton asked. "Very few. A lot of people will be watching us the entire time because there won't be much else to look at."

"Ignore them," I shrugged. "I can't help you there, Quinton. I'll be trying to listen to his speech. I'll be too busy to care about people watching me."

Quinton didn't look pleased with my lack of sympathy, so he changed the subject. "This is a terrible city."

"It is," I agreed. "I don't want to stick around and get involved in its politics. I want to fight Erika and leave."

"We need to get money, too," Quinton reminded me. "We're nearly out. Everything we eat here is paid for by Mayor Porter, but we'll need supplies."

"Wonderful," I muttered. "I'm sure you have a ton of ideas."

"We just got here," he replied. "I'll look into it tomorrow. We may have to spend a few more days here than we'd like. It'll be a long road to Fuchsia City, whichever path we take. We need to make sure we have enough for the journey."

"Right," I nodded, walking past him. "We'll talk more about that after this is all over. I'm going to talk to my Moemon."

My Moemon were sitting in a corner of the room watching me. When I approached, they stood up and stared at me with expectant faces. I told them the news and watched as their faces dropped.

"We should be by your side," said Christine. "We shouldn't be so far away from you."

"I know, I know, but there's nothing I could do."

"Do we have to listen to the speech?" asked Olivia.

"You don't," I replied. "I do, out of courtesy."

"But do we have to stay here?" She asked.

I repeated the options to her. None of them seemed appealing. She sighed. "I suppose I'll stay here, then."

"We'll keep you company," said Rose, smiling and rubbing her shoulder.

"There are so many people," mumbled Annie. "It's scary out there."

Christine and Stacy hadn't responded. I didn't need them to; I already knew they were planning on sneaking into the crowd. They couldn't stand being cooped up unable to help. It was Bailey I was most concerned about. She was staring silently at the wall, clearly deep in thought.

"Bailey," I said carefully as I approached her. She didn't move a muscle to acknowledge me. "What are you planning on doing?"

"I don't know, trainer," she muttered. "I don't want to be here. I want to go home."

"You're part of us, now," I said. "It doesn't matter what you want."

"I want to go home," she repeated more sternly. "I'll never be part of you."

"Maybe I'll take you home when this is all over," I said, annoyed. "Until then, you're stuck with us."

"Not for long," she muttered.

I paused, contemplating throwing her back in her ball. Her face contorted in confusion, and she glanced at me as if she wanted to ask me something. The moment passed; she turned back to the wall, and I walked away. It'd only make things worse between us. I tapped Rose on the shoulder and whispered in her ear: "Keep an eye on Bailey. I'm worried she might try to escape when I'm gone."

Rose didn't look surprised. She nodded and replied, "Very well. Do not be gone long."

"I won't. I'll be the first one back when this is over."

I said goodbye to the others and walked over to Quinton. He and I entered the other room, a small office, where several policemen were standing around. Most of them were watching Chief Harmen, still on the radio, waiting for him to finish. Mayor Porter waved us toward him and invited us to sit in one of the empty sofa chairs facing the desk.

"Harmen is coordinating with some of his lieutenants," he explained. "There are some preparations he needs to finalize before he's ready to explain."

"He looks like he's going to die from stress," I noticed, observing the sweat pouring from his red face as he practically shouted into the radio.

"He's handled worse," Mayor Porter replied. "He was Chief during the Celadon War, and that was nearly a month of civil war. It was the only time I'd seen him cry."

"Poor guy," said Eric.

"He's one of the best men I know," he continued "He's one of the pillars keeping this city standing. I'd dare say he's the only pillar left. He works harder than anyone else here."

Harmen put the radio back on his belt and gave a long sigh, leaning on the desk. When he looked up, his eyes were filled with rage directed at Mayor Porter.

"You just had to have your damn speech in person, didn't you? Give me and everyone else on the force more stress than we can handle."

But Mayor Porter wasn't deterred. "You and I both know you enjoy the challenge. I'll buy you a drink as thanks."

"You'll have to buy the whole damn bar to make it up to me."

He didn't waste any more time. He told us exactly what we'd be doing, who we'd be doing it with, and when. We'd be escorted by three men – the four of us – around the park and behind the stage. There'd be a large curtain to prevent anyone from seeing us until we revealed ourselves. We'd wait there until the signal was given, then Mayor Porter would go through the curtain. While the audience was focused on him, the rest of us would enter quietly and sit on three seats directly behind him. We'd be obscured, and few would be able to see us. Mayor Porter would give his speech, stay for a few questions, and then we would all be escorted out the back the way we came back to the building.

"Nothing goes wrong," Chief Harmen concluded gruffly. "No one gets hurt. No one sees you come or go. They just know you arrived and left. We keep those people out there calm for as long as possible. Any questions? No? Good, now let's go."

The officers in the room closed around us, forced us out of our seats, and walked us quickly out the front of the building. I stuck my arm out above their heads just before we left to wave goodbye, although I didn't see my Moemon's response.

It was much darker out. The park was illuminated by light poles around the perimeter and searchlights hanging from the nearby roofs. There were so many people that the massive park couldn't contain them all; they spilled into the streets. Traffic had built up behind them, and a few cars had parked to enjoy the show. They had quieted down after that burst of excitement earlier, although it was still incredibly hard to hear anything else.

We were led along the sidewalk until we reached the next intersection at the corner of the park. We crossed the street and walked behind the stage. To our left was the park and to our right were the ruins of the school.

I didn't get a good look at the ruins as we were led through town, and even at that moment I couldn't look at it for long as we were hurried along. All I could see was that the entire building was nothing more than rubble. The façade had completely disappeared, the walls had crumbled, what was left was scorched and seared. Yellow police tape wrapped around it, and a few officers stood guarding it and watched us pass by.

I was shocked when I saw the extent of the damage. It was a fairly large building, yet the bomb had destroyed nearly all of it. Only the back wall, a few lockers and a couple classrooms remained. I never thought that a bomb was capable of such a powerful explosion, yet the evidence was right in front of me. This looked like a terrorist attack. It was a miracle that no one was killed. No wonder people were so urgently wanting to know who the culprit was.

We reached the stage, a dark purple curtain blocking our view. We climbed up the wooden steps and waited just outside. I touched the fabric, watching it flow in the breeze, and enjoyed the softness. The officer next to me slapped my hand down, warning me not to touch it again. It stung.

A while later, Chief Harmen had his radio to his ear. He nodded a couple of times and then stepped through the curtain. We heard his voice a bit later as it echoed throughout the park. He sounded friendlier than I had ever heard him before.

"Hello citizens of Cerulean City! Tonight, we have a special guest speaker. He's the mayor of Vermilion City and a good personal friend of mine. Mayor John Porter!"

The stage shook from the cheers. Mayor Porter put on a bright smile and stepped through the curtain, and the cheers got even louder. I felt a rough hand on my shoulder and was pushed through. The lights were blinding, and I struggled to keep my eyes open to see where I was going. I managed to stumble my way to one of the three small chairs directly behind him. Quinton and Eric sat to my left, looking equally blinded.

If I thought there were a lot of people before, I was completely overwhelmed by the amount that I saw. Even though Mayor Porter blocked much of my view, I still saw thousands upon thousands of people to my right. Oceans of blue, infernos of red, fields of green, all of whom staring directly at us. I knew many eyes were on me, wondering who I was and why I was so close to this important man.

"Hello, everyone," Mayor Porter said, his voice booming throughout the park. The one thing that rose above the crowd. "I'm glad to see you all together. It's a humbling experience. Vermilion City is no small town, but I doubt we could match the numbers you've all pulled here today. Give yourself a round of applause!"

They applauded, their clapping like a quake that vibrated my entire body. Mayor Porter knew how to play to the crowd.

"Of course, this is a sad time for us all. There was a terrible tragedy that occurred earlier this week," he continued, his voice suddenly somber. "Of course, I am talking about the attack on the school and the loss of Jennifer Gordon."

I felt my heart stop. I heard a gasp to my left. The audience fell eerily silent. I saw confused and scared faces all around. I heard a ruffling above me, looked up, and saw a poster unfurl just above my head showing the smiling portrait of a young teenage girl.

Mayor Porter wiped a tear. "It was previously believed that no one was harmed. I arrived only a few hours ago, and I was told that nobody knew. Her remains were found in an otherwise empty classroom. She'd gone in over the weekend to catch up on some homework, and she was…" he swallowed. "…she was caught in the blast."

He paused, letting it all sink in. A girl… a girl was killed. Whoever did this… intentional or not… was a murderer. I heard frightened whispers. I heard angry whispers. I heard a buzzing as the audience grasped the gravity of the situation

"I happened upon these three boys during my journey to this city," Mayor Porter gestured to us, and suddenly all eyes were on us. "They're outsiders, and they witnessed the atrocity that occurred this week. Look at the surprise on their faces, the shock, the horror. This city fights amongst itself, and innocents are killed nearly every day.

"The impression that this city gives is one of chaos, of destruction, of war. You are all one people, but you do not act as one. You all have to work together to change this city, or it will not recover."

"It was the fucking Celadon Saviors!" Shouted a shrill voice near the front.

"It was those damn Mewtwo's Apostles!" Came a deep voice farther down.

"It's always the Kanto Kings!" Came a high pitched man's voice.

"It does not matter who the culprit is," Mayor Porter said quickly, maintaining his composure despite the growing resentment from the audience. People were starting to point fingers at each other and shout at each other, and he had to raise his voice to be heard even with the help of the speakers. "It does not matter who killed Jennifer. It does not matter who is innocent or who is guilty. This happened because of the feud that has been going on for over a decade. It happened because this city fights against each other rather than work together.

"It happened because this city is close to a civil war. You are all guilty. No one is innocent."

Mayor Porter was beginning to sweat. The crowd was growing anxious, angry. They were moving like a wave, trying to attack. They were barely listening to him anymore.

"People of Celadon City!" Mayor Porter said loudly. "I want you all to come away from this knowing that you could prevent this by working together! No more bloodshed! No more death! No more-"

And then the back of his head exploded, spraying the three of us with blood.

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy

Eric:

Helen the Drowzee


	3. Chapter 2: Celadon Cathedral

The universe slowed to a crawl. Mayor Porter lurched back, his head craned up to the sky. Blood splattered onto me as I stared at the bloody hole in Mayor Porter's head. His hands lost their grip on the podium, and he fell. He collapsed to the ground. The shot reached my ears, a loud bang that rang forever.

Then as time went slowly forward, the crowd finally reacted to what had happened an eternity ago. They stopped their stupid, useless arguing and stared at the fallen man. Then the screams began. The pointing at the stage, the crying, the shouting, the panic. The audience lost all sense of control; everyone pushed and climbed trying to get to safety. They didn't care about each other, only about themselves. Get to safety. Get away.

I was frozen in my seat, watching the carnage. I couldn't look away. I stared at the body, watched the panic out of the corner of my eye. I couldn't believe that he was dead. I refused to believe he was dead. Shot in his prime. It wouldn't register. I couldn't think it was true. It wasn't.

I was numb. I couldn't feel his blood on me. Couldn't see it. He wasn't injured, wasn't bleeding, wasn't shot, wasn't dead. It wasn't true. I didn't feel the hand grabbing my shoulder and wrenching me from my seat. Didn't see the man dragging me away. I just stared at the body until the curtains closed, separating the dead from the living.

I was pushed roughly down the steps, nearly tripping over myself. There was another officer on the bottom of the steps who caught me before I fell. He barely looked at me before pushing me forward.

"Quinton…" I whispered. "Eric…"

I wanted to know where they were. I turned around, looking for them, but the two police officers surrounded me, pushing me forward. We were going toward the school. We passed the park and went down the street. We were going the wrong way.

"Where… what's…"

"Quiet, son," one of them muttered. "We're taking you to safety."

"A backup in case this very thing happened," the other added.

I didn't question them. I just wanted to know where Quinton and Eric were. I repeated their names, but the officers kept quiet. We moved down another street, turned a corner, another street. We moved deeper into the city.

"My Moemon," I whispered. "Where are they?"

When they didn't answer, I started to get scared. I didn't know where they were. They didn't know where I was. Where were all of my friends? Why was I moving so far away? It felt wrong. They were lying. Leading me away.

"Let me go!" I said, my voice gaining strength. My body was still numb, but fear was taking over. "Let me see my Moemon!"

We stopped. Their hands were gripping my shoulders tight to my body. I wrenched free of one, but the other kept his grip. I grabbed the hands and tried to pull, but I couldn't get free. The officer whose hands were free reached into his pocket. He pulled out a bag and swiftly put it over my head.

I couldn't see anything. I was trapped and blind. At their mercy. "Let me go!" I shouted. "Help! I'm being kidnap-"

The bag was removed, and a ball gag was wrapped around my mouth. I coughed and sputtered, tried to push the ball out with my tongue. It was too tight. Then the bag was replaced. I tried to pull my arms away one last time. But that was that.

I was led around for so long. Down streets, through alleyways, across lawns and driveways. I lost all sense of time, all sense of direction. I barely felt my feet moving. My mind was racing. I was panicking. I was so lost, so confused. We kept moving, never stopping. I couldn't hear anything but my own heart beating. I was going to die. This was it.

* * *

Another eternity passed before we stopped moving. We'd just climbed a set of stairs and were stepping on an old wooden floor. I could feel the wood sinking as I stepped, hear the creaking. I was sat down on a wooden seat, and the two police officers walked away. I waited for silence, rubbing my arms together to get the feeling back in them. They didn't bind me. I removed the ball gag and the bag.

It was still dark, late at night. I was in a large stone room. It was the inside of the cathedral; I recognized the position of the pews facing a stage. An organ and a piano sat in the corner. Behind the stage was a stained-glass portrait of a young woman dressed in purple. Her hand was glowing black contrasting the golden sunset background.

The room was nearly empty. There was a single person hunched over the piano, his head in his hands. I stared at him and then turned to the closed wooden doors. The two men were outside. They wouldn't leave me alone. I looked around for another exit, but the walls were solid stone. The windows were too thin to jump through. I was trapped alone with this mysterious man. I couldn't do anything.

Then the shock rushed through me. The moment flashed by my eyes again. The shot, the blood, the screams. Mayor Porter fell off the stage and into infinity, and I was after him. I watched as he fell and fell, unable to help him, forced to watch as he disappeared into nothing.

The moment passed. I gasped. I felt my chest, felt my heart racing. I made sure I was breathing. I was breathing fast and hard. I made sure I could see. My vision was blurring. I checked the back of my head. I wasn't shot. Felt my arms. They were sticky, spotted with blood.

The figure at the piano heard me. He looked around, seemed to see me. I couldn't tell; his face was shrouded by a hood. He got up and walked over to me. A mysterious cloaked figure was approaching me, and I was frozen again. Frozen in fear.

He stopped right next to me. He removed his hood, and long silver hair fell to his shoulders.

"Hello, child," a pleasant woman's voice creaked. Her face was still shrouded by the darkness, but I could see her smile. "I see my acolytes have brought you to me."

It took a while for the voice to register. "Who are you?" I heard my weak voice ask. "Why am I at the cathedral?"

"You are at the cathedral because my acolytes brought you here, as they were instructed," she replied. Her smile dropped. "You knew that man, did you not? It was not mere happenstance that he met you outside the city as he described."

"I knew him," I said. "Not for long, but I… I knew him."

"The other boys knew him too?" She asked. I nodded. "Such an awful thing to happen in front of so many people. The monsters who did that will pay, mark my words."

She sounded like someone's loving grandmother; a soothing voice that promised only good things. Yet here she was swearing vengeance upon the people who killed Mayor Porter.

"I want to get out," I said. I sounded like I wanted to cry. I did want to. "I want to leave."

She hesitated, staring at me. "Wait one moment." She walked over to the wall and flipped a switch, and lights on the ceiling turned on, illuminating the room in a warm yellow glow. She walked back to me, and we could both see each other.

She had a face to match her voice; it was warm and inviting. She looked a lot older than she sounded; her face wrinkled and worn, her skin patchy. Her eyes were a dull purple and had years of experience and knowledge behind them. Her wrinkled hand had a wedding ring on it. Her cloak had a picture of the woman in the stained-glass window stitched on the front. She walked slowly, hunched over.

Then she saw me. A terrified, confused teenager who'd seen a tragedy befall right in front of him. She saw the blood splattered across my body and saw my fear-filled eyes. Her own eyes widened in shock; they started to tear. She moved close and placed a hand on my shoulder.

"It's going to be okay," she whispered reassuringly. "You're safe here. You're protected."

In the silence following her, the sounds of distant gunfire reached us. I swung myself around, watching the door. I didn't see anything indicating the gunfire was nearby. It was the gunfire itself that worried me.

The woman looked concerned as well, but she wanted to reassure me. "We're safe here. All of that is far away from us."

"Why are people shooting?" I asked. "What's going on?"

She moved over to the window and looked outside. I wanted to call out to her and tell her to get away, but my voice caught in my throat. She'd kidnapped me. She looked friendly and sounded nice, but I was here because she forced me to be here. She told those men to bring me here. She knew something bad would happen and planned to capture me in the chaos.

"What's going on?" I repeated louder. "Why did you kidnap me?"

That got her attention. She turned around, looking sad. "I can't see much from here. All of the fighting seems to be in the main square in front of the school. The crowd that gathered there turned on each other."

"Stop dodging my questions!" I said, getting angrier. "Why did you kidnap me?"

"That is a long and complicated answer," she said with a sigh. "Where should I begin? With a name, I suppose. My name is Mary Beth. What is yours?"

"Give me actual answers before I give you anything," I said.

"I know you're upset. I know you've witnessed something horrible. I hope you'll understand why I did what I did."

"What did you do?"

"As you said, I kidnapped you," she replied. "I took you from your friends and your Moemon to ask you for help."

"For help."

"Listen," Mary Beth whispered. I listened. The shooting was steadily getting closer. Screams were added to the shooting. Screams of pain. "This is the beginning of something terrible. There hasn't been fighting in the public like this since the civil war ten years ago."

"You're saying this is another civil war?"

To my horror, she nodded. "I'm not surprised this happened," she continued. "I've been expecting this for months; I've been planning for it. We all have. It only had to be a single event to cause everything to fall. Many of us thought it would've been the school's destruction."

"Mayor Porter's death…" The very thought almost brought that moment back. "…caused this?"

She nodded slowly. "His was a catalyst for something great and terrible."

"Stop," I said. His body was still warm on that stage. A catalyst? What awful person would speak of him like that? "Please stop."

But she kept going. "We have all seen this coming. We know that the future of this city, this nation, will be decided in the coming weeks. We've planned and planned, and we know the outcome. We will win."

She had looked toward the stained glass as she spoke, raising her arms up in the air. She lowered them and lowered her head to look down on me. "You are not from this city; I don't expect you to know much about our politics. But we know much about you, young Challenger."

My heart lurched. They knew. "Challenger?"

"As you were escorted through this city, you passed by my cathedral. We saw you and your Moemon all out of their Moeballs. No trainer other than a Challenger does that when entering a new city. Many of us heard the rumors about a group traveling through the region. It isn't a coincidence that you arrived at the beginning of this revolutionary period."

Of course they saw us. We were practically paraded through the city. Hundreds saw us enter with Mayor Porter. We had to have been important. But what she said… "It isn't a coincidence? You mean someone did this because of us?" If she was implying what I thought she was implying, then Mayor Porter died because of us. There was no way. I refused to think that way.

"Perhaps," she replied frustratingly vaguely. "You would have to ask the murderer himself, wherever he is. It is my belief that you are here because you were guided by Mewtwo and her wisdom. You are here because she wills you to be. She always has a purpose for her actions."

"…by Mewtwo," I repeated. "Guided by… Mewtwo." She sounded ridiculous.

She looked unfazed by my lack of understanding. "The Celadon War of six years ago involved a Challenger as well. That Challenger was instrumental in deciding the victor of that war." She put on a bright, victorious smile. "History will not repeat itself. We captured you before the Kanto Kings could."

"That's… that's why you captured me?" I asked. "Because you think I'll help you?"

She nodded. I almost laughed. "Fuck that!" I exclaimed. "I want to get out of here! Fuck this war! This has nothing to do with me. I just want to find my Moemon and leave!"

"But you can't leave," she said, keeping that annoying knowing smile. "Not until this war is won. You will help us."

"Or what?" I demanded. "You've already killed someone I respected-" the words surprised me, but I let them flow. "-What could you possibly to do me?"

"We did not kill Mayor Porter," she said angrily. "Do not put that evil act on us; we would never do such a thing to an innocent man."

"I have no idea what you people would do," I spat bitterly. "All I know is that you kidnapped me, a kid who has no part in this war, because you think I'll help you win it? Did you ever stop to think that maybe I just want to live my life without getting involved in these stupid politics? How could you ever assume that I would even think about helping you? I don't care about this place! I'm not from here! I want to get out!"

She opened her mouth to respond, but then we both were startled by my watch ringing. I stared at it in shock; I'd completely forgotten I had it on. Quinton's name was flashing on the screen. I didn't even give Mary Beth a chance to react before turning it on.

"Quinton!" I shouted. "I'm in the cathedral! Send help!"

There was a pause. "Quinton?" I repeated tentatively. "Are you there?"

"I'm here," came his voice, muffled behind a dull noise. "Arthur, you said you're at the cathedral?"

I looked at Mary Beth defiantly. "I am. I'm being held captive by some old lady. Can you find me?"

"I can't, Arthur," he sounded worried. "They've quarantined the city."

I hesitated, soaking in the information. I glanced at Mary Beth in confusion, but she was still recovering from my outburst. It seemed that that burst of frustration and anger finally got through to her. "What?" I asked flatly. "They've what?"

"They refuse to let me in," he said. "The entire city's on lockdown until the shooting's over."

"You've got to be fucking me!" I said exasperated. "What the fuck is going on? You're out of the city?"

"I was captured by some men dressed as police," he explained. "But Melody realized what was going on. Before we could get far, all of my Moemon came out of nowhere and knocked them unconscious. They brought me back to the building, back to Chief Harmen, and he got me out of the city. You said you were captured?"

"By the Mewtwo's Apostles," I said. It wasn't had to figure that out. The territory, the stained glass, the devotion to Mewtwo's apparent godliness. "They think I'm going to help them win this war."

"War?"

"You've heard the shooting, right?" I asked.

A pause. "I can't hear anything over this crowd. I only heard the one that killed Mayor Porter."

"Oh… well there's a lot of shooting," I stopped to listen. "And it's getting closer. The whole city's at war with each other."

"Try to escape!" Quinton said. "Get out! You're not fighting in a war! Go East!"

"I'm going to try," I muttered. "Trust me, I don't want to do anything dangerous here. Are my Moemon safe?"

"I don't know. They weren't in the building when I got back."

"What?" My heart dropped. "They're all gone?"

"Chief Harmen couldn't contain them. Every single one of them escaped."

"Fuck!" I yelled. My voice bounced off the walls and filled the room. "They're lost in this city? How the fuck am I supposed to find them?" Are you sure you haven't seen them?"

"I haven't," Quinton's voice cut in and out. He seemed to be walking through the confusion of the crowd, only occasionally speaking into the watch. "There's a lot of us. They evacuated a lot of the city."

"Evacuated? They really did that?"

"…I think this is the last straw, Arthur," Quinton mumbled. "Chief Harmen was furious. He was shouting at people over the radio, vowing to put an end to all this fighting."

"Let's hope he succeeds."

"I have no idea what is going to happen, Arthur. The police are still evacuating. They haven't explained anything. All of these people are confused and scared. No one knows the full story. The situation is beyond me."

"Okay. You're safe at least. Where's Eric in all this?"

There was a pause as Quinton fiddled with his watch. "He's at the Celadon Department Store. He might be hiding there. Who knows how he's taking this?"

"Call him. Make sure he's okay," I said. "I might make my way to him if I get the chance."

"Save yourself," said Quinton. "I know you want to find your Moemon. They're strong; they can take care of themselves. Get yourself out of the city and then worry about everyone, okay?"

I didn't hesitate at all. "You know I'm not going to do that."

"Arthur, please."

"Fuck, I'm an idiot," I muttered more to myself than him. "Look, I want to get out. I have to get out! But if my Moemon are still here, then I have to find them. I can't abandon them, and I won't."

"You're really going to do this," Quinton sighed. "You're in a warzone, and you want to save your Moemon. You really are an idiot."

I smiled. First time I've smiled in ages. "You know me too well. Keep me updated on Eric. I don't think I'll be worried about my watch for a while."

"Of course. Stay safe. Don't die, Arthur. Don't risk your life."

I hung up, took a deep breath, and turned around. The two policemen from earlier had snuck up into the room, standing by Mary Beth's side. They both had changed uniforms, wearing blue robes similar in design to hers.

"You heard me," I stated. "You know where I stand. I'm not going to bullshit you: I'm getting my Moemon back. I must stay in the city, so I might as well stay with you so long as you promise to protect me. And if you promise not to hold me back if I get a lead to where my Moemon are. Whatever happens with you guys happens. If you somehow happen to win this damn war, then even more power to you."

She whispered to her acolytes for a few moments, and then she nodded. "We have conditions of our own. You will be escorted at all times by these two men, even when you search for your own. We will allow you to find them, but you must do tasks for us in return."

"Tasks?" I scoffed. "What tasks could I possibly do here?"

"That is not for me to decide," Mary Beth replied. She gave a cautious glance at the doors. The shooting and shouting had nearly reached us. "But I believe it is time for you to meet the others, Arthur."

"Stand up," said one of the men. I obeyed, and they grabbed my shoulders. Thankfully, I wasn't gagged and blindfolded. I still hadn't told them off for treating me terribly. I didn't know if I wanted to.

We moved through the back of the cathedral and into an alleyway. We moved away from the main street deeper into Mewtwo's Apostle's territory. We passed abandoned building upon abandoned building and empty street upon empty street. It was surreal seeing the city like this. Just a few hours ago the streets were filled with movement and life. Now the city looked completely abandoned.

We were close to the city's walls before we stopped in front of a large, abandoned house. Mary Beth climbed up the front steps, knocked on the door three times, then two times more, then three more. There was a pause, and then a series of click, and the door opened. A burly man stood at the door aiming an assault rifle at us. He saw Mary Beth and immediately bowed, putting the rifle away.

"Sister Mary Beth, you had us worried," he said in a gruff voice. "We were concerned the plan had gone awry."

"Not to worry, Geoffrey," Mary Beth replied. "Our plan succeeded. The scouts were correct. We found the Challenger."

She gestured to me, and Geoffrey's eyes opened wide in surprise. He stared at me with his one remaining eye – his left eye hidden behind a scar and black bandana – and his face dropped from surprise and interest to disappointment.

"Not that I doubt you, Sister," Geoffrey muttered. "But how do you know he is the Challenger?"

"He confirmed it himself," she replied. "We will discuss with the others. Have they all arrived?"

"They have. The meeting began a few minutes ago."

"Scouts?" I whispered to the man on my right – a man named Derrick.

"Of course," Derrick replied with all the emotion of a piece of wood. "We've been scouting the enemy for years."

We left Geoffrey by the door and made our way through the house. It looked abandoned from the outside, but that was because all the windows were completely sealed. The inside was brightly lit and warm. Voices shouted at each other from deeper inside. We moved through a large living room into a large kitchen, and the noise continued to grow.

Mary Beth stopped us in front of a large wooden door. The voices were arguing just on the other side, loud enough that I could gather small pieces about an attack being planned.

"You have numerous questions," she said, looking at me. "You will not get all of the answers you wish. We do not have time to answer everything you ask; we must act quickly in order to keep our advantage. You will remain quiet unless spoken to, and you will not insult any of our order."

Then before I could respond, she pushed open the doors. We were met with a large crowd of dozens of blue-clothed people standing around the room. They completely ignored the rows and rows of chairs that covered the entirety of the room. The only occupied seats were on a raised platform at the other end of the room. Four chairs were occupied by women, and an empty fifth seat sat to the side.

The arguing died down immediately as we entered. The audience bowed their heads in respect as we passed. Derrick and the other guard – Blake – pushed me up the platform and held me beside Mary Beth, who'd occupied the final seat. The moment she sat, the room found their seats.

"We welcome you, Mary Beth," said the closest woman, whose red piercing eyes gave me a sudden familiar sense of dread.

"Bailey?" I whispered before I could stop myself. I drew strange looks from the Banette sitting in the chair.

"Sister Belle," Derrick corrected gruffly. "Don't make that mistake again."

"Why would you call me Bailey?" Sister Belle asked curiously.

I couldn't help but look embarrassed. "You… you remind me of a friend."

"There's more to it than that," Sister Belle continued. "Please be transparent."

I hesitated. I didn't want to offend her somehow. "I… one of my Moemon is a Banette."

She studied me carefully. "How do you treat this Banette you called Bailey?" She asked curiously.

"She doesn't respect me," I admitted. At least my hunch was right; this Sister Belle was a Moemon. A Banette. It was eerie how she could have been Bailey's twin. "She despises me for taking her from her home."

"As she should," Sister Belle said plainly. "If she were a Moemon worthy of respect, she would have abandoned you the moment you were captured by us."

"Sister, please," Mary Beth whispered. "He does not need this; he has already witnessed too much in a short time."

Sister Belle didn't look apologetic; rather, she stared at me defiantly. She only looked away when the woman in the middle chair stepped up. The room's tentative whispering quickly silenced.

"Welcome, Apostles," she announced. "A war has begun, and this meeting will decide the fate of this city!"

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy

Eric:

Helen the Drowzee


	4. Chapter 3: Mewtwo's Apostles

The crowd cheered uproariously with terrifying zeal. Just a few words caused them to erupt into crazed applause. There wasn't fear in anyone's eyes at the prospect of war. They couldn't wait to fight. They leapt into each other's arms in excitement, they hugged, they kissed, they stomped dust off the ceiling. Those in the front jumped onto the stage and rushed toward us with crazed looks in their eyes. Derrick and Blake instinctively stepped from me to Mary Beth to shield her with their bodies, so the crowd snatched me and pulled me into a deep hug.

I was surrounded by them, pulled so far forward that we started to teeter off the edge of the platform. More and more arms from below reached above to grab us and pull us down, to take me into the crowd. I could barely breathe; the sheer number of people holding me tightly was suffocating me. I felt myself start to fall. Then I felt a pair of arms reach through the mass and latch onto my arm. A yelp of pain somewhere behind me gave just enough relief for me to be yanked through.

Those in the crowd were still holding onto me, and Derrick couldn't fight them. I could feel his grip loosening as he struggled to fight them. Then I felt a strong force push us forward. Most of the mass, still tightly packed together, let themselves be pushed off the stage. They crashed into the crowd below, a pile of struggling arms and legs. If it wasn't for Derrick's strong grip, I would've joined them. Blake rushed forward and pulled the one lone man off me. The man simply grinned at me before bowing slightly to the women in the chairs and jumping off the platform.

Still breathing heavily to regain my breath, I turned to the women. All five were on their feet, but four had their arms forward with a fading blue light in their eyes. Mary Beth clutched the armrest to keep herself upright, but she seemed relieved to see me okay. The other four, however, ranged from annoyed to disgusted with all of us.

"There will be no more of that," the leader continued drolly as if nothing unusual had happened. I was shocked that she could be so calm about it. I truly believed I was going to die in that crowd. Yet she didn't even look surprised. None of them did. Derrick and Blake pulled me back to Mary Beth, and even their expressions were more annoyed than confused. "This is not the time to celebrate. Not yet."

It was clear that these four women to my right were Moemon. They were wearing those blue robes that covered most of their bodies, so all I could see was their faces. However, they all used Psychic to push the crowd away. These Moemon were the leaders of the Mewtwo's Apostles. That just left Mary Beth, the lone human of the five. Why was she a leader? What made her so important that she was given such status? Was she their trainer?

"We all know the plan; we know how we will win," the Moemon continued. "This is a night that will be remembered forever. A night of reckoning and rebellion, of victory and triumph. Each one of us will play an important role in the future of this nation. We have two weak enemies; we will overwhelm and destroy them. We will not fail.

"Mewtwo will guide us in her divine light. She will show us the way to our true destiny. We need her now more than we ever will, and she will answer our calls. The two blasphemers and their misguided followers will understand the true path down which our nation will walk. We will lead this nation to a path of true understanding. That will be our goal once we win."

The moment she paused, the crowd erupted into more cheers. They were captivated by this woman, bewitched by her words. They truly believed everything she said. Every crazy, insane word.

It took ages before the crowd quieted down. I thought their uproar would deafen me, but thankfully my ears were fine. I barely understood her next muffled sentence as I tried to recover.

"This plan must be carried out perfectly. If not, this will be a dangerous war with far too many lives lost. If there are any questions, do not hesitate to ask."

It took all my restraint not to step forward and raise my hand. I needed to know so much. But I kept quiet. A man below raised his hand, and the woman turned to him.

"Is Group Delta attacking Complex Q as well as R?" He asked.

The woman turned to the Moemon on the far right. This one stood up and nodded. "Complex Q, and then you'll meet with Group Epsilon for stage 2."

The man nodded, thanked her, and sat down. The woman next to him whispered something in his ear, and he nodded and whispered back. I stared at them in confusion. It barely registered that these two were normal, ordinary people. Yet they were cheering for war and discussing plans of attack. There were hundreds of people just like them. Hundreds of people ready for war. It was terrifying.

"I should remind everyone that your group leaders should have the plans memorized," the Moemon on the right continued. "If not, then you have very little time left."

"Who's that boy?" asked another man near the back, pointing at me. Then all eyes were on me. Apparently they'd all forgotten they nearly hugged me to death just a few minutes earlier.

"This boy is the Challenger," explained the Moemon at the podium. That last word caused the entire room to erupt into whispers. "Sister Mary Beth and her acolytes were able to procure him from the main square as Mayor Porter was assassinated. The distraction from his death allowed them to extract him without being noticed. Not a single soul knows we have him."

"Unfortunately, that isn't true," said Mary Beth. She motioned me to come closer to her. I hesitated, but Derrick pushed me hard and I stumbled toward her. I caught the arm of the chair, and she took my wrist and lifted my arm into the air. "The Challengers have these watches that tell them where they are. One called him as we were talking in the Cathedral."

"So the rumors are true, then?" The Moemon at the podium asked. "There are multiple Challengers."

Mary Beth nodded in reply. "Arthur told the other boy that he was being kidnapped by the Mewtwo's Apostles."

"You let him tell an outsider?" Sister Belle whispered sharply. "We have no time, then! Word will spread!"

"The other boy is out of the city," said Mary Beth reassuringly.

"You never should've let him talk," Sister Belle scolded. "You should've ripped the watch from his wrist."

"I'm an old lady," Mary Beth smiled. "I couldn't force the boy to do anything."

"That's why you have acolytes," Sister Belle sighed.

"That other boy, was he with you at the speech?" The Moemon at the podium stepped toward me, staring at me intensely. "The one sitting next to you?"

I nodded slowly.

"You knew him. Did you know the other boy?"

I nodded again.

Then the question came: "Where is he?"

I glanced at my watch, at the map. Eric's location hadn't changed. "The Department Store, I think."

The Moemon let out a deep sigh of frustration. She immediately turned back to the podium and repeated what I said. The crowd below shouted in anger, glaring accusingly at me as if the bad news was my fault. I was in utter confusion; I had no idea what that meant.

"The Celadon Department Store is controlled by the Kanto Kings," said Blake. "Your friend's being held captive by our enemy."

* * *

The room cleared out a few minutes later. Everyone exited quickly and excitedly, eagerly anticipating the attack. The two furthest Moemon on stage excused themselves to coordinate the attack and finalize the plans. Derrick, Blake, and Mary Beth stood by my side as Sister Belle and the leader approached.

The Moemon on the podium approached us slowly, walking upright and dignified with an aura of pride about her. She was the tallest of the Moemon, the oldest and the wisest, and from the way she carried herself she was the most respected of the five. Most of her body was covered in the familiar blue cloak, although stitched to her chest was a picture of a pair of crossed spoons. Her yellow hair spiked above her ears, and two tails of hair stuck out from beside her neck. An Alakazam.

"You are not the Challenger we want," she said dismissively. I would've been insulted if I didn't agree with her completely. "You're nothing like Jared."

"Don't say that," Mary Beth hissed. "Arthur hasn't shown us what he's capable of."

"I can see clearly what he is 'capable of'," she replied, eyeing me up and down. "He's nothing more than a boy; he isn't a leader. If we put our support in him, he will fail us."

"He can't even control his Moemon," snickered Sister Belle, leaning against her chair and looking at me amusedly. "They've all abandoned him."

"They haven't abandoned me," I spat defensively. "You took me from them!"

"Yes, but they haven't found you," she replied. "I'd assume they aren't even looking for you."

I felt a sudden rage build up, looking at her patronizing eyes. They were the ones who kidnapped me, and they were blaming me for not immediately siding with them? "Jesus," I said, glaring at her. "Are all of you Banettes cunts? Or am I just unlucky?"

Sister Belle stared at me in shock. Then rage. She ran at me and grabbed me by the chest. She seethed, "You're going to apologize, or I am going to kill you."

I didn't look away. I didn't open my mouth. I just glared at her. She had surprising strength, but I wasn't scared. I was furious. Frustrated at how unfair it all was. I wasn't thinking about what she could do to me. I was thinking about how much I could anger her before she snapped.

The Alakazam wrenched us apart and stood between us, staring silently at Sister Belle. The Banette continued to glare at me through her, but she kept still.

"You should apologize," Mary Beth advised me. "This is not the time to fight amongst ourselves."

"I'm not one of you," I said, ignoring her. "I shouldn't even be here. You certainly don't need me. I'm leaving."

But as I tried to move, I felt like weights had been chained to my body, keeping it rigid and still. I couldn't even struggle to free myself; the force was too strong. I couldn't move my head, but I bright blue out of the corner of my eye. This was the Alakazam's power. It was extremely strong, and I had little doubt that she was holding back.

"You are not leaving," she commanded. "We can't risk you leaving and being captured by the enemy."

"Then escort me out of the city!" I said. "I don't want any part of this war!"

"We can't risk it," she repeated.

"Sister Anna, please," Mary Beth pleaded. "It was a mistake involving him. We've clearly done enough to the boy.

"Do you take responsibility for him?" Sister Anna turned to her.

"I have to," she replied.

"Then keep him here. Sister Belle and I will help the others with the attack. He cannot leave the building." She let me go, and I collapsed. She turned to leave, and Sister Belle followed her without another look back at me.

Mary Beth helped me to my feet and patted my shoulder. She looked close to tears, horrified that I was being treated so terribly.

"I made a mistake," she said. "I should not have assumed you were willing to play a part in this war."

I stared at her in disbelief. I wanted to shout at her that I told her that very thing in the Cathedral, yet she brought me here anyway. There wasn't any use yelling. All it'd do was make the situation worse. I was trapped in this house. Blake and Derrick were watching me closely, so I couldn't sneak out. I took Sister Belle's chair, slumped in it, and stared at the crowd of empty chairs.

"So, I'm not leaving," I said uselessly.

"Not until Sister Anna says you can, unfortunately," Mary Beth replied.

"Then can I finally get some answers?" I asked. "Some real answers?"

"I… I suppose," Mary Beth said. "I honestly am not sure about much anymore."

I snorted. "Why do you say that?"

"This… isn't my war. I'm more here for moral support, like you."

That wasn't much of a surprise. The other four leaders had gone off without so much as a goodbye. They just abandoned her here. But I had other questions. "Who's Jared?"

"Jared was the young man who led the Kanto Kings in the Celadon Civil War six years ago," Mary Beth answered.

"He was a Challenger?"

"He was the Challenger we had that year. He spent many months in Celadon City, visiting all of us. He had heard of our struggles and wanted to ensure that all three groups were listened to. He wanted peace. He was strong, passionate, and caring. Most of the city loved him. When the police station was attacked by the Celadon Saviors and started the war, Jared allied with the Kanto Kings. With his support, the Kanto Kings overpowered us.

"Why did he choose them?"

"He understood our points of view. He sympathized with our belief in Moemon superiority, as well as the Celadon Saviors' belief in human superiority. But he wanted equality between both species," Mary Beth replied. She frowned guiltily. "I visited with him as often as Kevin, but he grew more distant the longer he stayed in the city. I suppose his choice wasn't a surprise; it was a disappointment.

"Kevin?"

At that, she smiled. "It's a good thing you don't know who he is. He is the leader of the Kanto Kings. He has been for as long as I have been the leader of the Mewtwo's Apostles."

"Wait, you're the leader?" I asked. "I thought Sister Anna was."

"I am its founder," Mary Beth replied proudly. "I am its acting leader. Until Sister Anna replaces me, I have final say in our plans. I approved our strategy, even if I was never told the specifics. As for Sister Anna, she has been groomed for leadership ever since I caught her. She was always my most distinguished Moemon, so it was no surprise that she took the reins so quickly."

My initial suspicions were confirmed. "Sister Anna is your Moemon."

Mary Beth nodded, smiling fondly. "They all are. They've been my Moemon for decades, ever since I was a young woman." She smiled at my confusion. "You're wondering how such a frail woman could be the trainer of such strong Moemon."

I nodded.

She chuckled. "If you were native to the city, the better wonder would be how the leader of the Mewtwo's Apostles could claim to own Moemon. You know nothing of us, do you?"

"I don't," I admitted. "I really, really don't."

She leaned back in her chair, smiling at the ceiling. "Where to begin with this… I was a traveler like so many others. My starter was given to me by a family friend: an Abra. We traveled the world, saw unbelievable sights, and had countless adventures. I caught my trusting team of Moemon and retired after several decades of travel, wanting to finally settle down peacefully.

"We retired in Cerulean City, opened up a small coffee shop and worked for a few years. One day, the rumors started that a Moemon had suddenly inhabited the cave, and forced most of the Moemon out of their homes. The citizens were furious and wanted the Moemon to return peacefully to the cave, so a group of us still longing for one last adventure, including old me, entered the cave.

"The power we faced was incredible. It was godlike. So many of us were forced to flee before delving far into the cave's tunnels. As I searched, the ground gave way beneath me, and I fell down into the cold waters below. I breached the surface gasping for breath, too tired to pull my old body free from the water's grasp. I felt myself losing my breath, swallowing water; I was drowning, and I was going to die.

"Then I felt a sudden peace. The water wasn't touching me. I was rising above it, guided by a shining light. I was going to the afterlife, going to be where I was meant to rest.

"I woke up some time later, staring at the cave's ceiling. I was not sure if I truly was dead. I felt unnaturally warm inside the damp cave and my hair and clothes were dry. As I got up, I saw a woman in front of me. She said nothing, she didn't move, she barely blinked, yet an aura of pure power emanated off her. She stared at me without any emotion.

"She'd saved me, I knew that much immediately. I owed my life to her. I explained who I was in the hopes that she would do the same. She said very little in response; she was named Mewtwo, a name I had never heard before. She was a Psychic Moemon. She knew nothing of her birth; only that she awakened in the middle of the sky above Cerulean City just a few days earlier. She hid in the cave to recover her abilities; she forced the inhabitants to leave to give herself some peace.

"She wished for me to help discover who she was. I agreed immediately, and she helped me escape the cave. I told nobody of my mission, determined to repay the debt I owed. I traveled one last time throughout Kanto before discovering my answer on Cinnabar Island. She was made by men, a clone. I was in disbelief, yet the evidence lay in the ruins before me.

"When I returned and gave her the journals I discovered, the pages and pages detailing experiments about cloning the Moemon Mew, she didn't react. She sat in a corner staring in silence at the waves. I left her to her thoughts and heard nothing from her for weeks. One night, she called me, and I rushed to her, and she asked me for another request. She wanted me to help her spread the word of her creation. She wanted the world to know that she was a clone created by man from Moemon.

"The world was to understand that what was done to her must never happen to another Moemon again. She thought of herself as an abomination, a beast not fit to exist. She would keep in solitude beneath Cerulean Cave for the rest of her days. She knew her power would give other men ideas to perform other experiments. But I was to tell the world that she was a pathetic, disgusting creature, an accident, to deter other creations.

"So I tried to do this very thing. But I was old and could no longer travel the world. Cerulean City would no longer listen to me, believing I was driven mad by my journeys into the cave. I moved to Celadon City, gained favor with the Church, and delivered my message. I gathered followers who sympathized with Mewtwo's plight, including many powerful members of Celadon City's elite.

"However, that was over ten years ago, and that message has changed significantly over the years. Where once Mewtwo's Apostles stood for the desire to no longer let humans experiment unfairly upon helpless Moemon, it evolved into a desire to no longer have humans claim superiority over Moemon. It is a greatly altered message, but I believe Mewtwo would accept it. By advocating Moemon's as beings equal and greater than humans, we will give Moemon rights to avoid any other experiments. My own team supported and advocated this claim, took control of our association and push our views with an intensity I could no longer generate. They make up the council, made decisions, and lead.

"I am now more of an icon; I have little power and no longer lead. I am respected for my founding of the association, and of course I have the love of my Moemon. They listen to my guidance when they require it. What happened earlier was…"

She looked down from the ceiling, her eyes widening in surprise as she saw me. "My apologies. I forgot the question. I rambled, as I tend to do."

I shook my head slowly. "It's fine," I said, struggling to put my own thoughts together. It was a lot of information to take in all at once. The entire history of the founding of the Mewtwo's Apostles. "So… so you met Mewtwo."

"I did. Many times," she smiled. "I believe I was the only human she was in contact with. Although I haven't spoken with her in years, I know she watches over me."

"You told me that she guided me to you?"

"I have had time to reflect on Her message as well. She has a power that even she does not comprehend. She saved my life for a purpose, even if she does not understand that purpose. She has a will that guides us all toward something grander than ourselves. She may be created by humans, but she was created for a purpose, and everything she does is to achieve that purpose. You were brought to me for that purpose as well."

I had a hard time believing that. "I'm not even from here. I can't be here for a reason."

But her smile brightened. "But Arthur, you understand that because you are not from this world, you must be here for a purpose. Why otherwise would you be here at this very moment, talking to the only human Mewtwo has spoken to, witnessing the beginning of the greatest war of this nation? You must have a greater purpose, because you were brought across whatever path you traveled to reach this world."

I didn't know how to argue that. I wasn't going to just assume that I was here for a reason; I wasn't that important. "What purpose?"

"Even She does not know," Mary Beth replied. "It may be a purpose that reveals itself generations after we have passed. It may be revealed during this civil war. It will come when it comes; we can do nothing but play our part."

"I said I don't have a part to play," I said. "I'm not going to do anything."

"Maybe that is your part," said Mary Beth. Her smile turned sly, knowing, as if she was seeing right through me. "Maybe it is not. I am no interpreter; I simply wish the best for the Moemon who gave me the power to help them."

"What did you mean by wanting humans not to be superior?" I asked, thankful for the reminder.

"Would you not agree that humans are superior?" She asked. I shrugged, unsure of how to respond. "Humans use Moemon for their own goals. We stuff them into balls and into computers, sometimes only bringing them out to battle. Sometimes never bringing them out. The act of battling for sport is barbaric and an entirely human idea. Moemon in the wild fight to the death out of necessity, yet we allow them to fight for pride when they no longer need to do so.

"Moemon have always been inferior to humans, ever since the first humans and the first Moemon met hundreds of thousands of years ago. How that came about has been lost to history, yet the fact remains."

She paused, thinking about her next point carefully, almost uneasily. "Tell me, child, do you know Moemon breed?"

I shook my head, feeling my cheeks redden slightly. I certainly didn't want to talk to an old woman about breeding. Like talking to our grandmother.

"Then I shall give you a lesson. Forgive me for being brash, for I have a point to make. If Moemon breed with Moemon, they produce eggs that hatch in a few days. If human males breed with Moemon, then the Moemon produce eggs that hatch in a month. They are always Moemon. Yet when humans breed with humans, the female is pregnant for nine months, and then a human is born.

"So Moemon produce offspring far more frequently, and their genes surpass human genes in reproduction. Furthermore, Moemon live twice as long as humans. They can heal almost instantly given the right medicine, and even naturally they recover from injury much faster than humans. Of course, Moemon are capable of powers far beyond humans; they produce fire, control earth, fly through the skies, surf through oceans. The Creator of the universe is said to be a giant Moemon.

"The point all of this evidence leads to, Arthur, is that Moemon are not inferior. They surpass us fragile humans. They are far superior. It is not fair that they are treated so poorly, that they are forced to breed and to battle for our goals, for our pride."

There was a spark and passion in her eyes that I had never seen before. Whatever she told me before wasn't the whole truth; this was what she truly believed. "So you want Moemon to rule humans?"

"If that is what comes to pass, yes," she said. "Moemons deserve a chance to rule. They have been subordinate for far too long. Mewtwo is the greatest of the Moemon, and she is willing to sacrifice everything to make the world a better place. The best human would never do something so selfless and pure; there is always something within us that would prevent us from doing what is right.

"A Moemon-dominated world is ultimately the goal of the Mewtwo's Apostles. Inferiority like the Celadon Saviors desire is barbaric, and equality like the Kanto Kings desire is simply not good enough. Moemons deserve better than that; they have a history of achievements to create, and they can only do that once they have surpassed humans."

Before I could reply – actually, mercifully preventing me from replying – a man burst into the room out of breath. He ran up to us, blocked only by Derrick and Blake. He waved his arms over their shoulders.

"Mary Beth!" The man gasped. "Please, I have to speak to you urgently."

"Who are you?" she asked. "How did you find us? You are not a member of the Mewtwo's Apostles."

"I'm not," he nodded. "I'm an envoy from the Celadon Saviors. I have a message for you from Greg."

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy

Eric:

Helen the Drowzee


	5. Chapter 4: The Front Lines

"From Greg?" I whispered. "Who's Greg?"

"Greg," Mary Beth replied, her face hardening as she stared at the envoy. "The leader of the Celadon Saviors has a message for me?"

"He'd… he'd like to speak with you," the envoy replied. "He has a proposition for you."

"I am not the one to speak to," Mary Beth replied. "He should speak with Sister Anna if he wants a proper response."

"He told me to find you," the envoy said. "You, Mary Beth."

Mary Beth sat in silence, staring at the wall. She tilted her head occasionally, but otherwise made no motion. She thought for several minutes before getting up and looking back at the waiting envoy.

"Very well," she said. "I am an old lady; I am not needed in this fight. I'll accompany you."

"Mary Beth, please," Derrick muttered. "This is not a good idea."

Mary Beth patted him on the shoulder. "I am no fool, Derrick. I know what Greg is capable of. I know what he will do."

"Then don't go!" Derrick pleaded. "There's no point!"

"Meet me outside," she nodded to the envoy. The envoy nodded back and walked out of the room. She waited until the doors had swung shut before answering. "I have played my part. There is no more I can do sitting in this building." She winked at me. "Your goal is to keep Arthur from harm. Follow him where he goes, but ensure that he is not harmed. Nobody must know who he is."

"I should go with you," said Derrick. "It is not safe to traverse the streets alone."

Mary Beth smiled at the relieved envoy. "I am sure I will be protected. This man would not let any harm befall me."

"No ma'am," the envoy promised. "You'll be safe."

"He's not leaving our sight," Blake promised. "We won't leave this room."

"Arthur has his own goals in this war. Make sure that he accomplishes them. I trust that you two will protect him, no matter where he goes."

Mary Beth made her way down the steps, and Derrick followed her, whispering to her pleadingly not to go. She ignored every word, assuring him that she would be fine. Derrick stopped just before the doors, looking at her defeated. She turned around and smiled.

"You're a fine man, Derrick. I know you'll do fine. You as well, Blake; you've grown so strong since I've known you."

"This isn't a goodbye," Blake replied. "We'll see you again."

"I hope you do. And Arthur, I enjoyed our chat. You'll learn more, I'm sure. I hope when you've learned everything, you'll understand the plight of the Mewtwo's Apostles. Find your Moemon. Find them, and you'll understand."

She gave one last wave and then exited through the doors after the envoy. Derrick's shoulders drooped and he slowly walked back to us.

"Old fool," he spat. He hit the wall in frustration. "She knows what he'll do."

"She knows a lot more than us," Blake shrugged. "But we can still stop her if you want."

"God I want to," Derrick sighed. "But she told us what to do. I hope the next time we see her, she's alive and well."

All this talk made it seem like she was already dead. "Hey," I said carefully. "Is… is Greg really bad?"

"Bad's an understatement," said Derrick. "Those Celadon Saviors have no sense of honor; they attack anyone who opposes them, innocent or otherwise. Greg's the worst of them all. He's a despicable, awful man. There's a reason he's their leader: he's ruthless."

"I hope for your sake he never learns about you," Blake added, massaging his black beard in thought. "We have to keep eyes off you."

"Which makes it a problem when we leave the headquarters," continued Derrick. "We have to protect you from being harmed, and we have to make sure nobody finds out who you are."

"That means you follow our advice and keep as close to us as possible," concluded Blake. "Or we'll ignore Mary Beth's request and take you right back here."

I blinked. They'd said that as if it was a single complete thought. It was as if they knew exactly when the other would finish speaking. "You two have worked with each other for a long time."

"Decades, kid," answered Blake. That said a lot, considering they looked mid-thirties. "But do you understand?"

"I do," I nodded. "Where should we go first?"

"Anyone who isn't part of this war will have left the city," said Blake. "They were in a building north of the main square, right?"

"I…" I paused, thinking. We headed straight west as we entered the city, and then we turned right. "I believe so."

"Then they'd be closest to the west entrance," he continued. "They'd have run there."

"They're Moemon," Derrick reminded him. "They could have followed us. They'd be closer to the east."

"My friend is at the west entrance," I said. "He didn't see them."

"Then there's a larger crowd than he can handle, they're still in the city, or they ran to the east. We should start with the quickest and safest option: we'll head to the east entrance."

* * *

We met Geoffrey outside the building. The door was ajar, and the giant man was staring at something to the right intensely. We approached him loudly, making sure he wasn't startled, and he waved us to him.

"Sister Mary Beth left with a man," he said. "Did you let her go?"

"We did," Derrick replied bitterly. "We advised her against it, but she commanded us to let her leave."

Geoffrey snorted. "She did the same to me." He nodded forward. "They're coming back."

We looked to the distance. A small group of people were heading to the building to our right. Several of them were wounded, leaning on those still able to walk. A single body was being carried by two others. They were moving quickly, shouting that they were carrying wounded.

"Are they the first?" Blake asked.

"First I've seen," Geoffrey replied. "The Medical Building's going to be filled with people. I feel terrible for those poor nurses."

Blake patted Geoffrey on the shoulder. "Headquarters is empty, Geoffrey. You'd be more useful helping those nurses."

Geoffrey gritted his teeth. "Can't handle blood. I'd rather guard the empty building." He eyed me carefully. "Why is the building empty?"

"Because the Challenger needs to find his Moemon."

"Good luck finding them," Geoffrey muttered. "I'll let you know if I see them."

"You don't even know who I'm looking for," I said. "How could you possibly see them?"

"You underestimate Moemon if you don't think they know you're around here," Geoffrey replied. "They'll find out you're here, and I'll tell them where you've gone."

I doubted it, but I didn't argue. We said our goodbyes and moved left. As we moved, we heard shouts echoing in the distance broken occasionally by gunfire. The sounds made me sick. I didn't want to consider that any one of those screams could be from my Moemon. They were strong, I knew that, but they were alone in a warzone. No matter where they were, they were in danger of getting hurt. I had to find them. I had to find them alive.

We kept to the alleyways away from the main square, and we saw nobody. Everything was deserted. It was only when we neared the walls that we saw flashing blue and red lights. We entered the main street and saw that several dozen police officers had taken position around the city entrance. Police cars lined the streets, creating three lines of protection. Each line had multiple men stationed, some of whom had weapons trained on us, although the majority wasn't paying any attention to us.

Before we got too close, a spotlight suddenly shined on us, blinding us. A voice from a megaphone boomed out of the darkness.

"Civilians, please put your hands in the air. You will be approached by an officer. He will escort you to safety."

We did as he commanded, having little choice otherwise. The voice brought our presence to the attention of all the officers, although they were clearly unconcerned with us as a threat. Most of the fighting was across the city, and they had been evacuating civilians the entire night. We were just another three fleeing the city to them.

However, we had no intention of leaving the city. The officer in questioned approached us, a casual smile on his old, weathered face as he came unarmed. He had a warm, gentle smile and appeared unthreateningly. "It's procedure, gentlemen," he explained apologetically. He moved forward to pat us down, but Blake and Derrick stepped back. "Please cooperate."

"We mean you no harm, but we'd like to keep our weapons," said Blake.

The smile dropped from his face. The officer became alert quickly, and his hand dropped to his weapon. "What are you doing here?"

"I just had a question for you, officer," I said. The officer's eyes darted to me for a split second before returning to the two armed men beside me. "Then we'll be on our way."

The officer must have made some signal with his barely moving body, as the officers guarding the gate shifted into a more defensive stance, ducking behind the cars and drawing weapons. I was quickly realizing that this was a mistake, that we had to get out of here quickly before things went south.

"Just a question," I repeated more earnestly. "You wouldn't happen to have evacuated a lot of Moemon, would you?"

The officer turned to me, an expression of disbelief on his face. "Of course we did, son," he replied incredulously, as if the very question was ridiculous. "Hundreds of them. Hundreds more we didn't recognize."

"Hundreds?" I repeated, dishearteningly. "So… so if you would've seen a Charmeleon-"

"If you're worried about your team, they're probably safely out of the city," he said. He noted the dark blue clothes my bodyguards were wearing. My own clothes flashed red and blue with the lights. "Although I wouldn't expect Mewtwo's Apostles to have a team of Moemon."

"Damn…" I muttered. "If I were to leave the city to check after them, I can't come back in?"

"The city's quarantined to protect civilians," The officer replied. "Everyone is safely in Saffron City. You will not be allowed in."

I nodded, and the officer quickly continued. "Please, son, come with us. Whatever is happening between you gangs is not worth your lives. We will protect you."

"Thank you, officer, for your help," I said. "We'll be on our way."

"Son, wait!" The officer shouted. "Don't turn away!"

I felt Derrick grab me and push me away. We sprinted into the alleyway before any of them could react. I could hear a lone pair of footsteps following us until it stopped in defeat. We ran and ran until we were sure we wouldn't be followed. I leaned against a wall, catching my breath.

"So, Arthur, what now?" Derrick asked. While I was trying to recover as fast as I could from the sprint, my bodyguards were checking surroundings and looked no weaker than usual. "Where are we going?"

"Just…" I wheezed. It had been a long sprint. "Just let me think…"

I didn't know what I expected. Of course they'd evacuated most of the city through that entrance; they'd never remember a few Moemon. My team wouldn't have abandoned me. They were still in the city. They had to be.

"Why was there a blockade?" I spat. "Why'd the police have to be guarding the gate?"

"Keeps the fighting contained to the city," explained Derrick. "Make it easier to handle for them. They won't join in until we're exhausted. Just like last time."

"We aren't worrying about the police yet," added Blake. "Not until we've dealt with the other associations."

"Fuck… and they won't help us, either," I muttered. "Why'd we run so fast? Were they going to shoot us?"

"Of course," said Derrick. "The police have no love for any of us. They'd rather have us all dead before helping any of us. The police are neutral to us, and try not to bother them. If they did help us, the other two associations would know, and the police wouldn't be able to handle them."

So the police were no help. The gangs were no help. I thought about my remaining options, and then called Eric on my watch.

"There's still Eric," I muttered. "He might be able to help."

"The one captured by the Kanto Kings?" Blake asked. "How would he be able to help?"

"He might've seen something," I replied. I wasn't counting on that, but maybe I'd get a lead.

Blake and Derrick shared a look behind me. I was too focused on my watch to worry about it. Eric still wasn't picking up. I let it ring several times, recalled him, let it ring, recalled. Nothing.

"Fuck," I swore. "He's not picking up. What could that mean?"

I didn't wait for an answer. I called Quinton. Thankfully, he picked up almost immediately.

"Arthur, are you okay?" His panicked voice came through the speaker. "It's been hours!"

"Has it really…" That caught me off-guard. I hadn't checked the time, and it was still dark out. "I'm fine. I'm with the Mewtwo's Apostles trying to find my Moemon."

"You're actually looking?" I heard him sigh loudly in exasperation. "You're going to get yourself killed."

"Probably," I said. "Eric isn't picking up. Have you managed to talk to him?"

"No, not that I've been trying," Quinton replied. "I called the others. They all know that you and Eric are trapped in the city."

"Oh, good," I said, curious that none of them had called me to wish me good luck or even confirm that I was trapped. They must've still hated me. "Did they say anything?"

"That they hope you get out okay," Quinton replied. "A lot of them didn't want you to search for your Moemon."

"Of course they did," I muttered. "Where are you, by the way?"

"We're still outside the gate," he replied. "We don't have anywhere to go. Fuchsia City's so far away, and there are no other nearby towns. I managed to find a nice family who's kept us company."

"You're still close to the city?"

"We can hear the gunfire," Quinton said. I noticed an uncertainty to his tone. "And the screaming. It isn't pleasant, Arthur, I don't know if I'm going to be able to sleep tonight."

I felt a tap on my shoulder. Blake was motioning for me to hurry the conversation. I perked my ears and could hear distant footsteps coming from behind us. It could've been the police. I nodded and said quickly, "I haven't found any of them. Can Melody help?"

"Melody?" Quinton repeated. He said something I couldn't hear, and then continued. "She can't. There's too much Psychic energy throughout the city; she can't detect individuals."

"Oh… alright," I said. It had admittedly been a stretch. I didn't expect it to actually work. It was more of an excuse to hear Quinton again. To hear something friendly amongst the terror around me. "Alright, thanks. Listen, I have to go. We'll talk again."

"You're done?" Blake asked. I nodded, and he pulled me down the alley. We ran deeper into the city, closer to the violence, but away from the unknown footsteps. We stopped a few minutes later once we couldn't hear them anymore.

"Any other leads?" Derrick asked.

"Fucking… I don't know," I sighed. I had run so much. I was so tired. I just wanted to go to bed. I couldn't, though, not until I knew all of my Moemon were safe. "I don't think we have any other choices. I need to go back to the building."

"Back to the main square?" Derrick asked. When I nodded, he shook his head. "That is far too dangerous. We'd be traveling through Celadon Saviors and Kanto Kings territory. We aren't risking our lives."

"What the fuck else am I going to do?" I asked in frustration. "My Moemon would've ambushed us if they were following us. Six of them against the two of you? They would've taken those odds. They aren't around us. They're deeper in the city."

"Then they're impossible to get," said Derrick. "We'll get back to headquarters and wait until the fighting's died down."

"We should find one of the Sisters," said Blake.

Derrick looked at him in confusion. "Why?"

"They'll have advice for us."

Before either of us could reply, Blake had taken off. We passed the headquarters and saw Geoffrey staring uneasily at the growing line of wounded people traveling to the Medical Building. Nobody paid us any attention. We only had to travel a few more blocks before finding a large group of healthy men and women standing around Sister Belle. She was ushering out orders to multiple squads, pointing in every direction to the west. Eventually the group dwindled down to a few members, and she recognized us.

She gave instructions to the final people, who left after saluting, and walked over to us.

"You should be at headquarters," she said, eyeing us warily.

"We're on a mission," explained Blake. "We'd like to be assigned to a scouting party."

Derrick glared at him as soon as the words left his mouth, but Blake ignored him. Sister Belle watched the two carefully.

"You want an excuse to get into Celadon Saviors territory?" She asked with a sneer. "Why? You'd just be risking your lives for Moemon who don't want you."

I opened my mouth to argue, but Blake must've known that'd get a reaction out of me. He placed a firm hand on my chest and forced me still.

"Sister Belle, we are on a personal mission from Sister Mary Beth. We'd like the safest method of transportation."

"Scouting certainly isn't the safest," Sister Belle snorted.

"Then what is?" I asked.

"Teleportation," she replied. "But being as you are all simple humans, that's simply impossible. I'm declining your request anyway. I wouldn't feel safe if you were in Celadon Saviors' territory; you would get captured quickly."

"We're going over whether you want us to or not," I said defiantly. "You might as well be on our side."

Sister Belle stared at me derisively. "I will force you unconscious for the remainder of the war," she threatened. "Keep quiet, Challenger. Go back to headquarters."

"There's nothing there for us," argued Blake. "It's empty."

Sister Belle chuckled. "I would hope Mary Beth's personal bodyguards would know where she was at all times. If she's hiding from you in the building, then you're doing a terrible job."

"Sister Mary Beth isn't at headquarters anymore," Derrick chimed in. "An envoy from the Celadon Saviors came for her, so she went with him."

"From the Celadon Saviors…?" Sister Belle's eyes widened in surprise. "An envoy..." A pause, and then she looked at us angrily. "You three will not enter their territory!" She sprinted away.

"So that didn't work either," Blake sighed. "It was worth a shot."

"We need to find another Sister. Sister Belle was not the one to help us," said Derrick.

"Are there any other ideas?" I asked. "Maybe we could dress as Celadon Saviors and sneak through."

"That's an option," Blake nodded. "Although I wouldn't want to wear their disgusting red clothes. I also wouldn't want to get shot by my own troops."

Derrick sighed impatiently. "Let's just move on. The other Sisters will be close to the front lines."

So we moved deeper into the territory. We had passed the church, and we were nearing the front lines. The cacophony was loudest here; shouts and screams and clanks and whirls of gunfire were just a few blocks down. Hundreds of Mewtwo's Apostles members lined up along the alleyways, screaming orders at each other and exchanging fire with the enemy a few blocks over. Freshly wounded were being pulled from the front lines, replaced quickly by others.

We hid a block behind them, hidden from sight. Both sides hunkered down parallel to each other stretching from north wall to south wall. We had tried to approach them, but bullets had sprayed in our direction and ricocheted off the walls in front of us. As we backed off and hid, more bullets hit that exact spot, sending dust everywhere. We tried down another path farther south, but the gunfire was constant there.

It appeared at first that the war lines were divided by the lines of members – a straight line ahead of us that stretched down the city - but then out of nowhere a group of men dressed in red clothes came out of the alleyway to our left and sprinted deeper into the Mewtwo's Apostles' territory. They had completely missed us, barely looked around for anyone watching them.

"What the fuck?" Derrick muttered, peering around the corner to watch them. "They're inside our territory!"

"There were five of them," noted Blake. "Nobody else saw them. We should follow them."

Derrick nodded and grabbed my shirt, pulling me after them. We ran through the alleys, seeing glimpses of red in front of us, dashing down the alleyway to our right, then to our left. They were moving haphazardly, yet somehow they managed to avoid any of the Mewtwo's Apostles on their journey through their territory. It looked like they were intentionally avoiding any fighters, as we passed group after group of them to our left yet the men didn't react to them.

The men stopped outside a doorway, whispering to each other. The three of us ducked behind a dumpster down an alley and watched as three of them kicked the door down and ran inside. The other two stood guard outside, watching all three alleyways.

"How did nobody see them?" I whispered. "That shouldn't be possible!"

"They got lucky," said Blake. "The Celadon Saviors aren't smart, and they aren't tactical. Whatever these five are trying to do, they only got here because they ran at the right times."

"They didn't hide once," Derrick added. "They aren't cautious. They're reckless and stupid."

"But they chose that house for a reason," I argued.

"Right, so we aren't going to let them get what they want," said Blake. He nodded at Derrick.

"You aren't going to move from this spot," said Derrick sternly. "Got it? We'll be back."

"Trust me, I won't," I promised.

The two men took position behind the dumpster, their pistols drawn. They peered out from behind it, eyeing their targets. They whispered something to each other, and then fired simultaneously. The two guards dropped, and then Blake and Derrick sprinted to the doorway. Blake wrenched the weapons from the two guards' hands, then whispered to each other, and then walked inside the door.

Meanwhile, I was trying to deal with the ringing in my ears. I had covered them the moment they drew their guns, but the shots still were far louder than I had anticipated. I stayed hidden, not wanting to make myself seen in case any stragglers were nearby. I didn't want to see the guard's bodies either.

Blake and Derrick had dropped them too cleanly for my tastes. It was like they'd gotten a lot of practice; they barely communicated before firing simultaneously. I didn't doubt that they could take the three men inside. I just didn't want to see the results of their attack.

We'd run farther north, just a few blocks east of the front lines, so the air was thick with the clanks and whirs of war. Those two bullets were deafening to me, but nobody on the front lines would've thought anything of them.

I managed to hear gunfire from the house. Three bullets, one after another. It was over, I hoped. They'd come outside, and we'd move on.

But I felt a pair of hands grab me from behind. I panicked, punching the air, trying to attack the Celadon Saviors, trying to prevent them from kidnapping me. But the hands continued to pull, and I couldn't find my target. I was pulled down the alley into the corner, hidden by shadows. I tried to scream, but the moment a sound left my voice one of the hands clamped over my mouth.

"Quiet," a voice seethed. It sounded familiar. "They won't be gone for long."

The hands released their grip, and I scrambled to my feet. I turned around. That silver hair, those piercing red eyes. They all looked so familiar.

"Belle?" I asked.

But the woman who stood before me looked almost hurt. "Belle?" She repeated. "Is that what you're calling me now?"

Whatever spell – whether exhaustion or panic or delirium – that had taken over my mind disappeared the moment she spoke. I blinked in surprise, rubbed my eyes, even reached forward to touch her shoulder. It was her.

I pulled her into a tight hug and choked out, "Bailey… I'm so glad…"

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy

Eric:

Helen the Drowzee


	6. Chapter 5: Ronald

I had so many things I wanted to tell her. I had so many questions. I couldn't. I was hugging her so tightly, with such relief, that neither of us couldn't get a word out. Anytime she tried to speak, anytime she tried to stop this moment, I squeezed tighter and forced her to stop. I was close to crying. It was the first friendly face I'd seen since the whole damn war had started. We weren't even close to being friends, but at that moment I didn't care; I just wanted to hug one of my Moemon.

It was too quick when she pushed me away. She was glaring at me furiously. "You humans are too emotional. We wasted precious time with your useless hug."

"I'm so glad you're alive," I managed to say. "You… you look amazing!"

"You look awful," she countered. "Why're you with these men?"

"It's a long story," I said. "Where have you been all this time?"

"Following you. Waiting for them to leave." She eyed the house suspiciously. "You can't trust anyone here."

"They've been helping me look for you guys," I said defensively.

"They also kidnapped you," she reminded me.

"How'd you know about that?"

"I followed you," she replied flatly. "I was in the crowd. I saw those men taking you away."

"You've been following me for that long?" I asked, unable to hide the pride in my voice. I wanted to hug her again for caring about me. She'd followed me for hours! Bailey, of all my Moemon!

"Yes. I didn't enter the building you were in, but I followed you outside."

I was beaming. "Yeah, they kidnapped me because they knew I was a Challenger. They thought I could help, but I can't, so they're letting me look for you guys."

"Letting you? They're running you around the city."

"It's a big city," I muttered. "And I didn't know where to look. Are the others with you?"

"No. I was in the crowd; the others weren't near me. Some were still in the building, some were scattered around the crowd."

"You can't sense them or anything?" I asked hopefully. She shook her head. "Well, shit, I hope they're okay. I was hoping all of you stuck together."

She scoffed. "I don't need them. They weren't following you. They-"

"They didn't care like you did," I said, grinning cheekily.

She didn't look amused. "You will take me back to my home when this is over."

"Depends on what you mean by 'this'. The civil war, I make no promises. The Challenge, absolutely. Until then, Bailey, you aren't leaving me."

I pulled out her Moeball. Her eyes darted to it immediately, glaring at it with distrust.

"They can't know I found you," I said. I glanced back to the house. Thankfully, they hadn't come out yet. We were too hidden to be seen from the house's windows, so we were fine until they were in sight. "You're right: I can't trust them. I barely know them. It's stupid that I'm doing this. It's stupid that they're escorting me around this warzone, and they're the only protection I have. But I'll find you guys. I don't know what they'll do when I do, so they can't know."

"Arthur?" Came a call from the house. Blake and Derrick were walking out, their guns drawn, looking around. "Where are you?"

"I'm glad you didn't run away," I said honestly. "I… I was worried."

"There's still time," she said, smirking.

I smiled back and returned her to her ball. I walked out of the shadows, my hands in the air, and the two sighed in relief.

"Let them out," Blake said to Derrick. Derrick nodded and walked back into the house, while Blake joined me by the dumpster. "We were worried you ran off."

"I needed to get hidden," I said. "I'd say I did a good job; you couldn't even see me."

"Too good. You aren't leaving our sight. This was a onetime thing."

"What happened? Who are 'them'?"

As if to answer my question, Derrick walked back out of the house. A man, a terrified woman, and two children walked out after him. The five of them went over to us, and Derrick pointed to him.

"Ronald Quill, his wife, and their two kids," Derrick explained. "Ronald is a famous lawyer and political activist who advocates Moemon rights. Ronald is also a man-" he stared directly at the man as he spoke. "-who should have evacuated hours ago."

"I was finishing work," Ronald explained calmly. He had sleeked back hair and horn rimmed glasses and, despite it being so early in the morning, was dressed in a professional suit. Despite crossing over five dead men, he looked as if he was heading off for a morning stroll. His family was absolutely mortified, trying to avert their eyes from the two dead men before them. "We slept through the alarms."

"Leave," commanded Derrick. "Take your family and leave the city."

"I can't, Derrick," Ronald replied. "I still have work to take care of."

Derrick got right in his face, staring him directly in the eyes. "These men broke through our front lines and ran through our territory. They stopped in front of your house, kicked down your door, and were about to shoot you and your family before we stopped them. If we hadn't spotted them, you would be dead."

"I'm forever in your debt," Ronald said, although he sounded more annoyed than appreciative.

"You are a political figure, and you have a target on your head. These were assassins, sir. They wanted you dead. You aren't safe in the city. You need to get yourself and your family to safety."

"My family will leave," Ronald promised.

"You will as well," Derrick insisted.

"I can't abandon my work."

That seemed to snap his wife's attention to the situation at hand. She grabbed Ronald's arm and tugged it. "Please, dear, you can't stay here! You know what happened to your brother! I don't want to lose you too!"

Ronald hugged his wife closely and whispered in her ear, "You won't. I'm not going to die. I'll be safe. I need you to leave. I need to know you're safe."

"Your work isn't worth your life!" His wife pleaded.

"I know. It's my brother's work too. It's worth both of our lives."

* * *

Blake ran off to find someone to help escort them out of the city. Ronald's wife continued to plead until Blake came back with a pair of men. Ronald and his wife shared an embrace, and then he hugged his children. Although they all insisted Ronald stay, he refused, waving to his family as they disappeared from sight.

"You're making a stupid mistake," Blake muttered. "They'll find out you're still alive, and you'll be attacked again."

"I was asleep, and they caught me by surprise," Ronald replied. He looked completely calm and fully awake, not even slightly disturbed by the idea that he may never see his wife and children again. "I know my life is in danger. It won't happen again."

Derrick scoffed. "You have no idea what the Celadon Saviors would do to get to you."

Ronald turned to him, looking down on him. "Do I now? How many men came to my brother's office and killed everyone inside? Ten. How many men killed his wife? Seven. How many men came tonight? Only five. I'm not a priority. My work isn't important enough for them to focus too many resources on me; I haven't introduced it fully."

"How do you know how many men killed Nigel Quill?" asked Blake. "All records of that attack were destroyed in the war."

"I have sources as a lawyer," Ronald replied. "I work personally with the Sisters, and they provide me with information I need. I saw the tapes. I know the men responsible for both attacks."

"What kind of work is so important that a lawyer needs to stay in a warzone?" I asked dismissively.

"Work important enough that assassins would attempt to murder me," answered Ronald. "Enough to warrant protection, but not enough to warrant evacuation."

"Take your work with you, then," I suggested.

"Impossible. My work is my home. I have considered every possibility. I cannot leave the city without risking losing most of my work. I must stay here and defend myself."

Derrick was shaking his head. "You're so stubborn. Just like Nigel. Fine, we'll get some people to protect you, if you're so insistent on staying."

For once, Ronald looked relieved. "Thank you. I'm glad you offered."

"What work is it, though?" I asked.

"The abolition of Moemon trainers," Ronald replied. "As well as the destruction of all Moeballs and Personal Computers designed with the purpose of storing Moemon. The banning of all Moemon battling, and the dismantling of Moemon Gyms and the Moemon League."

"…oh," I muttered. No wonder people were angry enough to assassinate him. Millions trained Moemon. Millions would see their dreams destroyed.

"That was the work my brother began decades ago," Ronald continued. "He was assassinated six years ago. His wife butchered last year. His daughter presumed dead. Nobody's seen her since. This work has cost my family so much. I will see it to its completion; I will see it passed; I will not abandon it. If I do, everything would have been for nothing."

There was something familiar about the determination in this man's eyes. An air of confidence and assurance that I knew all too well. To him, his work was worth far more than his own life. This civil war just outside his doorstep, the assassins who were sent to kill him, even the few of us willing to help him, were nothing compared to the goal he had. I thought he was an idiot for risking his life, but I also found myself respecting and even admiring him.

Ronald chuckled quietly, noting the disbelief I couldn't hide. "I'm sorry. I know I have an obsession with my work. I could go on for hours about it. However, I am truly grateful that you were able to save me."

"If you really were grateful, you wouldn't stay in danger," said Derrick. "You'd get to safety."

He ignored him. "It is good luck that you happened to be outside my house when these men entered."

"We followed them from the front lines," said Blake.

"I see," he said. "I should… I should thank you all, somehow." He paused in thought, turning back to his house. "I can offer my house as shelter for the night in case you need to rest."

That last word reminded me of how exhausted I was. I'd been running the entire night, searching, constantly jumping at the sound of gunfire. I'd been kidnapped and pushed and pulled against my will. I'd been suffocated, threatened, and scared to death. I hadn't slept in nearly twenty-four hours. I'd been running on adrenaline for so long. I wanted nothing more than to just fall into a nice, comfy bed and sleep the rest of the war away.

"We can't," said Derrick, and my dream of a peaceful sleep vanished. "We have our own goal to accomplish, and we can't afford to sleep."

"I see. I wish you the best of luck in your goal, then," said Ronald.

"We'll stay with you until someone else comes," said Blake. "We-" His statement was cut short by a sudden scream and the sound of a body falling to the ground just to our right. Derrick whipped his pistol out of nowhere and ran to the corner.

"Get inside the house," Blake commanded, pulling out his own weapon. "Both of you. Now."

Ronald and I ran inside and shut the door behind us. We could hear more gunfire coming from that alley, more bodies falling, more screams. We weren't far from the front lines. The Celadon Saviors might have broken through. The front lines could've fallen. I looked at Ronald, saw him deep in thought, and hoped he was coming to the same conclusion.

"Ronald," I started. He looked down to me. "You may… you may not have a choice."

He didn't reply. He moved from the door and walked up the staircase to the right, disappearing on the second floor. I glanced at the house before me – a simple, clean living room that opened into an even smaller kitchen – before another shout made me turn back to the door. I moved to the side and glanced through the blinds, leaning as close to the window as I could to see far to the right. I saw three bodies lying in the alley, but they were draped in shadows and I couldn't see who they were.

"Ronald!" I hissed. "Where are you?"

I backed away from the door and crept up the stairs. I needed to know what Ronald was doing. Two doors on the right were closed. I opened them, whispered Ronald's name, saw the outline of beds, and closed them again. They would be good places to hide if the front door was broken down.

I moved down the hallway that branched to the left. There was a single door to my left and right. The left was a small bathroom, and the right was slightly ajar. I tapped the door, saying, "Ronald?" and watched as it squeaked open.

Ronald was standing behind a desk with a pistol in his hand, loading a magazine into the chamber. He stared at it with a rare concerned expression on his face, as if the very thought of shooting it worried him. He glanced up and saw me staring, and he motioned me to enter.

"Come in, quick," he whispered. "Lock the door behind you."

I did as he asked. As I entered, I nearly tripped over a stack of papers stacked next to the door. I looked down and saw hundreds of papers scattered across the floor, and then I looked at the wall and saw thousands of papers stacked against the wall. Several filing cabinets were labeled alphabetically and no doubt filled with multiple hundred files each. Two large desks covered two of the walls, and each desk had a computer and several boxes covering nearly every inch. On the other two walls were a map of Kanto and a map of Celadon City. Both maps were marked with red ropes, with newspaper clippings, with black markers circling important locations and mentioning important people. The entire room looked like a scene of a detective determining the most elusive serial killer.

"This is my work," Ronald explained, no doubt noticing the surprise on my face. "My brother's work. Years of our lives. I can't abandon it. I would not be able to leave with a fraction of what is necessary to plead my case."

"This is all to abolish Moemon trainers," I whistled. "This must've taken you decades."

"Several dozen of us worked on this," said Ronald. His eyes looked sad as he recounted. "Nigel, Jennifer, Taylor, John, Sarah, Marcus, Bob… the list goes on. All of them are dead."

"What?" I gasped.

"These ideas are revolutionary, and so they are terrifying. Few can imagine a world without Moemon being pawns for human goals. It is as natural an idea as war, yet it's only accepted because humans aren't the ones being injured. But Moemon are so much more than humans could ever hope to be. They are shackled. If this world is to evolve, that shackle must be removed. Moemon unrestrained would be the greatest benefit to mankind. Slowly, ever slowly, we are realizing this.

"All of my colleagues have died for this idea. All of them murdered. Many by those who oppose us: the Celadon Saviors and Kanto Kings and the police. People who would rather stay uselessly in a stagnant world, people who are so infuriated by change that they act without rational thought. So they attack us and prevent us from spreading our ideas. They keep us silent so they can continue to live in their world."

He sat down at the desk and set the gun to the side, his eyes blazing with passion. "I am a lawyer. I make countless enemies because of my profession. I make even more because of my ideas. I have spent far too much time, seen far too many people die, to give up now." He smirked slightly, as if remembering a joke. "I haven't spoken to anyone about my work in months; I had begun to think that everyone had forgotten. Maybe that saved my life. Maybe that was the reason they sent so few men to kill me. Nevertheless, they will send more."

"You need more protection," I muttered. "You need much more than a pistol."

He stared at the pistol. "It may as well be a paperweight in my hands. I've never killed before. I don't even know if I would be willing to kill to protect my work."

Then he looked at me with a curious expression. "I'm so sorry. I'm a terrible host; my wife was always better. I… I'm explaining my entire life to you, yet I don't even know your name. You're being escorted by two of the Mewtwo's Apostles best bodyguards; you are far more important than me."

"I don't know about that," I muttered. "I'm Arthur. The only reason they're protecting me is because I lost my Moemon in the city."

"You're a trainer," he said.

"A Challenger."

His eyes widened. "A Challenger? So you're the poor soul this year. No wonder the Mewtwo's Apostles hold you in such high regard. You no doubt understand our ideas."

"That's a… a complicated issue," I replied. "One that I don't think we'll have time for tonight."

"What is your stance on this war?"

That was simpler. "I'm neutral," I said. "I just want to get my Moemon and get out. This isn't my war. I have no reason to stay in it longer than I need to."

"That is understandable," said Ronald. "You are a child. You've no reason to fight in this war."

"Exactly!" I exclaimed, relieved. Finally someone in this gang who didn't immediately want me to abandon everything and support them. "Like… I have to be neutral. I only came to this world a month ago; I don't have a stance on whether Moemon should be kept as slaves or be equal or superior. My Moemon are my family, and I'd do anything for them. They risk their lives all the time for me, so I can only do the same for them. But I don't know if anyone else thinks the same of their Moemon. I don't know how they should treat them. I can't!"

"Unfortunately, not everyone believes the same as you," Ronald sighed. "I would be satisfied with a world who believed in Moemon as you do."

"Even if there are still Moemon trainers?"

"It would be better than this world; Moemon deserve far more respect than they have."

"I-" But I was interrupted by the sound of the front door getting slammed open. We froze, listening intently as a few pairs of footsteps stomped around downstairs. I tried counting. There were at least three, but none of them was Blake or Derrick. They wouldn't move so carelessly. What happened to them?

I moved over to the light switch and shut the light off, then I made my way over to Ronald. I tripped over a pair of boxes, sending them crashing to the ground. The footsteps stopped suddenly, and I swore to myself as I got to my feet.

"Grab the gun," I whispered. "How many bullets do you have?"

He didn't move. "Grab it!" I said. I didn't want to touch it. "If it's the Celadon Saviors, and they find us, then we're going to die, and your work will be destroyed. Get your gun and get ready to fire."

That made him grab it. The footsteps continued again, searching the entirety of the downstairs. A deep voice said something: "Found the rest of them."

"That man did that?" Another voice grunted.

"He's a lawyer, not a fighter."

"The gym leader's a florist," the first voice countered. "Profession means jack shit here. He could be an assassin poised as a lawyer."

"I wish," Ronald whispered. The sadness in his voice made me smile involuntarily. I was thankful he couldn't see; I didn't know if he'd believe me laughing out of nervousness.

"Check the upstairs. They could still be here."

"Fuck…" I whispered. "Is there another escape route, maybe?"

"I will not escape," said Ronald.

The footsteps moved up the stairs. One pair threw the first bedroom open and went inside. Another pair went into the second bedroom. We were running out of time.

I pulled out Bailey's ball and sent her out. Her shadowy figure appeared. Ronald gasped in surprise, aimed the pistol and clicked.

"Don't shoot!" I hissed in panic. "She's my Moemon!" Holy shit if he was more competent at firearms, Bailey would've been shot. "The safety's on. Pull the little hinge on the back." I heard another click.

"What is going on, Arthur?" Bailey asked, staring at me unconcerned. "You look terrified. We're in danger."

"Men are outside. They're going to find us," I said. "Is there… is there anything you can do?"

Bailey's red eyes were the lone lights in the dark, suspended in the air on nothing. They gleamed the moment I asked. "If they're dangerous, I can kill them."

"Do-" I began. I wanted to tell her not to kill them. But this was war, and people died in war. Our lives were in danger. They couldn't find us. …I'd deal with the consequences later. "Do it."

Then the eyes disappeared. We waited in silence for a few short seconds, then a loud shout came from one of the bedrooms. The other footsteps ran toward the shout, the detached voices wondering what had happened. But then there was a stifled gasp, and then a gun fired, and then another gasp. Both gasps were followed by weights dropping to the ground. There were another few moments of silence as Ronald and I wondered if Bailey was safe. Then the eyes reappeared, and Ronald gasped again. Thankfully, he had enough control not to shoot my Moemon.

"The men are dead," she said simply. "No one else is in the building."

"Ronald…" I said. "Now's our chance to get out. Come with us."

"I can't," Ronald whispered. His voice trembled. "I can't. I'm sorry I can't go with you."

"You have eight assassins now," I reminded him. I paused, waiting for a response. I assumed he was shaking his head. "Damn it… fine. I'll send help. Don't die." I got up and turned to Bailey. "Let's go."

We opened the door and walked down the hall. I shivered, feeling a strange coldness travel through my body. Whatever Bailey had done to those men, it was still in the air. I glanced at her, and she looked unaffected. As we turned the corner, we saw the results of my command. One pair of legs stuck out of the darkness of one of the bedrooms, and the other two men collapsed on the steps. All of them were dressed in red clothes, all of them were dead.

"Oh… you really did…" I whispered. It didn't hit me that I ordered these men dead until I saw their faces. All looked horrified. Bailey had scared them to death. "They're really…"

"That was what would have happened to you if Stacy hadn't attacked me," said Bailey as if pointing out an interesting plant. "You owe your life to her."

I grimaced. I shivered recalling what happened outside Rock Tunnel. The coldness and fear I felt then. "Funnily, I owe my life to you, too."

I stepped over the bodies and crept to the front door. It was ajar, and I could see several new bodies lying on the ground. I looked around, but there wasn't any movement. It was safe for the moment. I stepped outside, closing the door behind me, and off the front porch. I got a close look at those who had fallen while Ronald and I were hiding.

There were six new bodies on the ground outside. Three of them were dressed in red, all riddled with bullets. One was a young woman dressed in blue. But worst of all, sitting against the porch, were the lifeless bodies of Derrick and Blake.

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy

Eric:

Helen the Drowzee


	7. Chapter 6: Celadon Saviors

I'd feared the worst after the Celadon Saviors broke into the house. But the reality was far worse than I could have imagined. I was in shock; I couldn't look away from their corpses. Their lifeless eyes stared up at the darkened sky, their mouths hanged open, their blood poured from the holes in their chests. They kidnapped me, held me against my will; I barely knew them, but they were my tiny bit of safety and security I had in this warzone. They died protecting me.

"Someone's coming." Bailey's cold voice took me out of my trance. I looked up at her. She was looking to our right, not bothering to look at the corpses surrounding us. "Where are we going?"

I needed time to think. I didn't know this city, and we were alone. I debated going back into the house, but the door was closed and Ronald still had his gun. I didn't want to run back inside only to be shot by him. I needed an immediate solution.

"Into the shadows," I said. I hesitated as Bailey moved to the alley. Blake was right next to me, his gun on the ground next to his hand. I bent over and picked the gun up, handling it gently. It felt heavy, metallic, alien. But I needed it. I held it to my side as I joined her in the alley.

"Give me time," I whispered apologetically as she stared at me expectantly. "I need to think about what we're going to do."

As I whispered, three men ran past us, completely ignoring the bodies. They were wearing red. Their footsteps disappeared, and then I realized something that my shock had kept from me: the sounds of war were to our east. The front lines had shifted past Ronald's house while we were inside. The Celadon Saviors pushed the Mewtwo's Apostles back several blocks.

We were in Celadon Saviors' territory; we were no longer protected by the Mewtwo's Apostles. Everyone we had known who could protect us were on the other side of a warzone. We were completely alone in enemy territory. I didn't know how they would react toward us. Would they shoot us on sight? Would they regard us as civilians? Would they try to recruit us?

I held the clothes I was wearing, feeling the green fabric. We looked like Kanto Kings. We'd be shot or arrested if we were caught. I glanced at the bodies lying on the ground. One of the men was wearing a red hoodie. That would probably be enough to blend in. Maybe. But that also meant scavenging the dead, and I didn't know if I was willing to do that. It also meant survival.

A shout from behind me caused me to jump, and I slunk deeper in the shadows. Bailey barely even reacted, standing guard. I put my hand on my chest; my heart was beating incredibly fast. I didn't even realize how terrified I was. Everyone… everyone was dead.

"Oh… oh god…" I whispered, clutching my head in my hands. I shuddered. The night was so cold. "Oh… oh I can't…"

Blake and Derrick… they survived so much. They were so strong. And they were dead. They died protecting us. They died because of me. Why were they dead? Why was I alive? Maybe… maybe they weren't… maybe I could still save them.

"They're not dead," I whispered. Bailey looked at me strangely, but I barely noticed her. "They can't be dead."

Forgetting everything, all the danger and all the death, I sprinted from the dumpster over to Derrick. I grabbed his shoulders and shook him, wanting him to blink away.

"Derrick, wake up," I said hopefully. "Derrick, stop sleeping. You'll be fine! You're still-"

I moved my hand to his chest, felt the warmth of the blood. I paused, lifted my hand and stared at the redness. He wasn't… that wasn't enough to kill him. He could still wake-

I felt something grab my shirt and pull me into the alley. I didn't fight it. I was too focused on the blood. On the warm, horrible blood. I slammed into the wall, and my hand slapped my face. The blood dripped from my nose into my mouth. The taste was disgusting. The smell was…

I reeled forward and puked. I couldn't handle it. The smell made my nostrils flare. The taste…

I spat the last of my stomach out of me, feeling an awful burning in my throat. I couldn't look at the ground. I didn't want to smell it. I just wanted to throw up again, but there was nothing left.

"We can't stay in this spot forever," Bailey reminded me. She had nothing but disgust on her face.

"I know," I wheezed. I was recovering. My moment of hysteria was passing. I had made my decision while I was vomiting. "Just give me a bit."

A few minutes later, I was wearing the red hoodie of the dead man. The man had been shot in the head, so the hoodie was relatively clean. There were some bloodstains, but they could be explained away. I wanted Bailey to wear a red shirt as well, but she refused to change clothes.

I tried to ignore the fact that I was grave robbing. It wouldn't do me any good to feel bad about it. I thanked the man for his sacrifice as I was taking the clothes off him, and I closed his eyes so he'd rest peacefully. I did the same for Blake and Derrick. They deserved better.

"We'll go west," I said, pushing the thoughts of death behind me and steeling myself for the task ahead. "Away from the fighting. The others would be with other civilians; we'll try to find a refuge."

Sadly, the thoughts of death would be postponed; the front lines had moved, but the remnants of the fighting remained. Just two blocks east were the former battlefield, and as we entered the alleys we saw the bodies. Hundreds of them, blue and red, all lined up along the streets, through the alleys, behind cars and dumpsters and trash cans, on steps, in houses, behind piles of bodies. Two streets filled with death.

"Holy…" I couldn't believe it. There were more people here than there had been at the headquarters. There must've been dozens of places the Mewtwo's Apostles convened to plan their defense. There were just… just so many people. And this was only one small portion of the city; the line could've stretched down the entirety of the city.

I couldn't stay. I was going to release whatever scraps were still simmering in my stomach. I covered my nose to attempt to block the smell and stepped over a smaller pile of bodies to move through the street. There were some other red figures in the distance checking people for signs of life, but no one paid any attention to us. I barely paid attention to them either; my eyes kept straight ahead until we had long passed the awful sight.

* * *

We moved through empty streets and down desolate alleys, hiding from anyone who came near. We saw several groups marching east toward the battle, and we saw a few civilians running in any direction they could to escape the war. The faintest of yellows crept above the horizon; it was morning. We had been running and hiding, and my Moemon had been alone for an entire night!

The thought occurred to me more than once that any of my Moemon could have been in that line of bodies, and I would never know. It made me sick, and I stopped and clutched onto Bailey for support. Despite her disgust, she stayed by me without a word. I tried to hide the thought, but it kept creeping back as our search continued. I couldn't afford to think like that, but we couldn't find a sign of any of them. I had to believe they were alive, but we didn't know!

As we neared the center of the city, we heard sounds that distracted us from the gunfire behind us. Crying, laughing, shouting. Peaceful sounds. Sounds that weren't war. We approached carefully, Bailey's piercing eyes surveying the street ahead. Several soldiers were scattered around the street; some were in small groups and immersed in discussion while others were walking freely in and out. We'd be safe to walk amongst them.

As we entered the street, we heard a large collective shout of "Celadon Saviors!" to our left. A larger group had finished their combat tactics and broken apart, rushing in every direction. A lone woman was left leaning over an overturned dumpster, staring at a large map of the city. She wore a red three-piece suit and her blonde hair was tied up in a ponytail. She looked deep in thought, so I didn't want to disturb her. But she had a map, and I could use that to find a refuge.

She noticed me approach and immediately furled the map, her piercing blue eyes watching me carefully. I stopped, deciding she really didn't want to be disturbed, but she decided to walk to me instead.

"You," she eyed me up and down. "Why aren't you following your orders?"

"I'm… I'm not a soldier," I said. She had a deep, commanding voice, and I felt inferior the moment she opened her mouth. "I'm a civilian."

Again, she eyed me. "A civilian wearing soldier's clothes," she said in a tone that blatantly said she didn't believe me. "You chose the wrong thing to wear, kid."

"I… I guess I did." I strongly considered running. The woman looked like she was debating shooting us, and I could tell that Bailey was growing tense. I placed a hand on her forearm to warn her not to do anything rash. "I need help… I just need to know if civilians still in the city are meeting anywhere."

She didn't say anything. She merely stared at me. She let go of the map with one hand, lowering it to her side. To a weapon hidden under her shirt.

"Hey, hey," I said suddenly. "Hey there's no need for that!" I could feel eyes behind me as the groups quieted to watch. We were gaining far too much attention and needed to escape.

Her eyes darted to Bailey. "You come up to me with a Moemon ready to attack and a weapon under your shirt. You come wearing clothes that you took off one of my soldiers. You're a spy for the Mewtwo's Apostles, or you're an unlucky person who looks exactly like a spy."

"Unlucky person, I swear!" I said. "I have fucking shit luck. That's why I'm stuck in this hellhole!" My grip on Bailey's arm tightened. I knew she was going to break soon. I desperately needed to diffuse the situation. "I don't know who you are. I just want to get to civilians so I can look for someone."

She smirked. "I don't know if I should shoot you for lying or shoot you for not knowing me." Her hand hadn't moved. My eyes were darting from her face to that hand at her side.

"I'm new here," I admitted. "We got here yesterday. We don't know what's going on! We just need to find our friends!"

And then her eyes lit up. "You're lucky you were on television, kid. I thought I knew you from somewhere. That saved your life." She crossed her arms, and I nearly sighed in relief. "You were behind Mayor Porter when he was giving his speech."

"I'm looking for my Moemon," I repeated. "I got separated from them during the chaos."

The woman eyed Bailey suspiciously. "You clearly found one, and she looks like she wants to murder me."

"I had a team," I said quickly. "Five of them."

"You'd be better off going to the Department Store," she said. "Of course, you'd have to get into Kanto Kings' territory, and you won't be able to do that until we've broken their lines."

"Are there any places in your territory where there are civilians?" I asked.

She nodded behind her. "The casino's your best bet. A lot of people were trapped by those fucking Apostles, so a lot of them are there. They can't cross the front lines like you clearly did. Just go down this street. You'll find the sign pretty hard to miss."

"Thank you," I said. "And thank you for not shooting me."

"There's still time." She winked. I tried to walk by her, but she suddenly grabbed my arm tightly. I could see her eyes widening as she tried to connect the dots. "Hold on, kid. You… you were behind Mayor Porter… you came in with a team of Moemon. You crossed a battlefield!"

Shit. I tried to wrench my arm free, but her grip was far too tight. "I hid," I admitted. "I got lucky!"

"You have fucking shit luck," she repeated verbatim. "There's something important you're hiding from me. Something that makes you speci-" then her eyes fell to the watch on my arm, and she solved the puzzle. "You're a Challenger!" She eyed me like a prize. "You can help us!"

"I am," I said. "But… don't. The Mewtwo's Apostles already tried. They gave up on me."

"You went to them?" She asked.

"They kidnapped me. They wanted my help. I couldn't help them, so they let me go."

"You were in Mewtwo's Apostles territory, yet you survived and reached ours," she was eyeing me with more respect now, as if she believed I fought my way over instead of hiding and letting others do the fighting for me. "Did you steal those clothes off the man you killed?"

"What? No. He was already… already dead."

The respect turned to disappointment. "But you are a Challenger."

"I am, but I won't be able to help you."

"That isn't up to me to decide. You're coming with me."

"Let go," I demanded. "You're going to regret it."

"Recall your Moemon," she threatened. "You're going to meet Greg."

"I don't want to meet him," I said.

"You will," she said. "You said you were looking for someone. You help us, and we'll help you find them."

"I can't help you!" I pleaded. "I keep saying that!"

"That's up to Greg to decide. Now come with me."

She gave my arm a tug, and then she screamed in pain, released her grip, and dropped to her knees. The soldiers surrounding us held up their weapons, staring at the women. Without thinking, without hesitation, I turned to Bailey and tackled her. We fell into the wall, and mercifully the screaming stopped. I held Bailey tight against the wall as she tried to break free from my grip.

"Don't stop me," growled Bailey. "We aren't going with her."

"They'd kill us!" I argued. We couldn't hurt her! We had dozens of people watching us. We couldn't kill her. "We can't hurt her." I continued, defeated. We had no choice. We had to go with her.

"What… the fuck… was that?" The woman gasped behind us. She had picked herself up and glared at us, hunched over. "Fucking Moemon!"

"That was Bailey!" I said, standing up as proudly as I could. This woman respected strength, and Bailey was the only strong thing we had. "She protected me because you threatened me. Never do that again!"

"I should shoot her," The woman growled, but she only glared at us. "You're coming with me and considering yourself lucky she didn't do anything permanent."

I hesitated, knowing demanding anything while surrounded by these men was a huge risk. "We will. But… but we're coming as allies. You aren't bringing me to him. We'll walk together."

She stared at me in silence, then her eyes moved back to Bailey, and then she nodded slowly. With that nod, the men lowered their weapons. She held out her hand, gesturing for the gun I was hiding in my pocket. After a moment of consideration, I gave it to her. She placed it in a pocket and motioned for a few men to follow her for protection, and we all moved out of the street.

We were surrounded by men. I didn't consider them an enemy just like I didn't consider the Mewtwo's Apostles friends. They wanted something from us, and we could get something from them. If we worked out an arrangement, we could all walk away happy. That was the goal.

And Mary Beth was supposedly with Greg. If she was okay, she could vouch for us.

* * *

We traveled the streets in silence; the sounds of war were loud enough for all of us. If we tuned out the constant screams of pain in front of and behind us, the journey was relatively peaceful. We barely saw anyone; the few we did were off in the distance running in every direction. I noticed Bailey never took her eyes off a group until it disappeared. She had no trust for any of the Saviors.

We reached our destination: the skyscraper located in the northern center of the Celadon Saviors' territory. A small base had been constructed around the surrounding area. The nearby buildings were filled with people running in and out clutching important pieces of paper. Several soldiers stood guard at the skyscraper's entrance.

The guards nodded at the woman as she walked through. They didn't even need an explanation; they simply watched me as we passed them. The woman led us through a small lobby to the elevators and we ascended to the top floor. The bell dinged as we stopped, but the elevator doors didn't open. There was a metallic clang, and the doors jerked as they tried to push open.

"Greg," the woman called, annoyed. "It's Karen. I brought someone important."

There was another pause as a metallic object bumped against the door, and then the doors slowly creaked open. Several hands appeared in the crack and wrenched the doors open completely. Three strong, tall men stepped aside, keeping the doors open. Assault rifles hung by straps from their necks. I tried taking a step forward, but Karen kept a hand in front of my chest, keeping me still. She stepped into the room, giving me a warning look not to move.

"Who is so important that you feel the need to interrupt our meeting, Karen?" A deep voice asked. The entire floor outside the elevator was darkly lit, so I couldn't see the source of the voice.

"A Challenger," Karen replied confidently.

"A Challenger in this city during this civil war?" The deep voice questioned. "Whoever this person is, he is merely lying to keep himself alive."

"But-" Karen began, but she paused, listening to something too faint for me to hear.

There was silence for a few seconds, and then the deep voice said, "Very well, let him in."

Karen motioned me forward, and I stepped cautiously into the room. Once Bailey and I were clear, the men guarding the elevator released the doors. They slammed closed, and the elevator began to descend. They placed two metal bars over the doors, preventing them from being opened from the inside.

The entire floor was a single large room. Where once there was a large dividing wall – obvious from the wooden floor I was standing on which clashed with the carpet deeper in the room – there was now a wall of overturned office desks. At least five other men were somewhere in the darkened room, hidden in the shadows; all of them carried assault rifles and stared at us suspiciously.

We squeezed through a small hole in the makeshift barrier and entered the carpeted half of the room. One wall was made entirely of windows which overlooked the city, and another wall had the logo of the company that owned the building – DONAVAN - in large letters hanging from it. There was a single light source: a chandelier hanging above a large wooden desk in the center of this half. Numerous plaques and trophies and a computer decorated the desk.

Two other people occupied this half of the room. Mary Beth sat in one of the sofa chairs facing the back of the room. She stared at me with concern and confusion, although she was unharmed herself. The other was obviously Greg: a tall, middle-aged black man wearing a grey three-piece suit. He looked at me with an expression that I was all too annoyingly familiar with: disappointment.

"Oh, Arthur…" Mary Beth whispered. "I had hoped it wasn't you." Then her eyes moved to Bailey, and they widened. "Belle?"

"I found one of my Moemon," I explained. I would've giggled if it was more relaxed situation; I had, after all, made the exact same mistake.

"Oh, that's good," she said.

Greg got to his feet, and suddenly everyone silenced and stared at him. He was an imposing man, hiding a bulky figure and large muscles underneath the professional suit. He towered a head over me, staring down at me with contempt. He passed completely over me and kissed Karen, embracing her. They stood completely still, enjoying each other's touch, then almost just as quickly broke away.

"How is the attack?" Greg asked without a hint of emotion.

"We're pushing on the eastern front and are at a standstill on the west," Karen answered.

"Not good enough," said Greg. "How are our reserves?"

"They are stationed throughout the city."

"Send the western teams in. Break their lines."

Karen nodded. "Should we reinforce the western with some of the eastern teams?"

"Not while the Apostles are still fighting. We don't know what they're planning."

Karen looked at me. "If I could vouch for the Challenger-"

"No need," Greg turned to me as well. "He'll tell me everything I need to know."

She hesitated. "I… I promised him we would help."

"He'll tell me that as well." Greg nodded to the elevator. "Go."

Karen stared at him, anger briefly flashing in her eyes, and then she nodded and exited the room. Only when the elevator doors were forced open and the elevator itself descended did Greg speak to me.

"Karen is my wife and the acting commander of the armies," he explained. "She is the strongest woman I know, and she has a ferocity that rivals even my own. That is why I fell in love with her in the first place."

He paused, waiting for me response. "Oh…" was all I could struggle to say.

He eyed me up and down. "You're wearing our clothes, yet Mary Beth vouched for you, which means she knew who you were. You came from the Mewtwo's Apostles, yet you're in my territory. How?"

"I was hiding in a house near the front lines," I explained. "The front lines passed over me when I left the house."

"So my men didn't check your hiding place? I'll have to remind them not to leave survivors."

"You will do no such thing!" Mary Beth warned.

"If soldiers can hide in a house and get behind my line of attack, they can pincer my men and weaken them," Greg stared at her callously. "They cannot afford to be careless when winning."

"A lot of people did search where I was hiding," I said quickly.

"They didn't find you." Greg looked back at me. "Incompetence is just as dangerous as ignorance."

"They didn't have a chance. They were killed before they found me."

"Who killed them? Not you."

"Maybe it was me," I glared at him.

He wasn't impressed. "Who killed them?" He repeated.

I hesitated. "Bailey did."

"Of course, your Moemon," Greg turned to Bailey with contempt. "I'll be honest, Mary Beth, I expected your army to put up a greater fight given the amount of Moemon in it. It's disappointing that your men were the first to falter."

"We aren't fighters," Mary Beth whispered. "Many of us have never held a gun before in our lives."

"That is even more disappointing," said Greg. "If they disappoint me more, there will be no more need for our meeting."

"Why did-" I began, but Greg interrupted.

"Challenger, Karen mentioned that she promised help. What did she promise?"

"I'm looking for my team," I said. "I don't know where they are. She promised that if I helped you, you could help me."

"You can't help us," said Greg. "Just because you have the title of 'Challenger' doesn't mean that you have the skills necessary to influence this war."

I blinked. He got it immediately. "Oh… good… You understand."

"Of course I understand. Jared was an influential man even before the attacks on the police station. He had charisma and personality and intelligence. He stayed in Cerulean City for months. The city listened to him, and they turned to him when the Celadon War began. You have none of his strengths. You only happen to have his title, and from the rumors there are a dozen like you."

His words wounded me. I found myself hating him. He insulted me to my face and expected me to take it. But I had to take it, because he had nearly a dozen guards surrounding him. He had no fear, not even after being told that Bailey killed many of his men singlehandedly. He regarded me as a kid in way over his head, staring at me patronizingly as if I was a pest.

"However, out of respect of Jared – even if he chose the wrong side – I will help you. This is clearly not your war; you're suffering unnecessarily. I will give you this one gift. There are civilians in the casino. I will ask if there are any Moemon who know you. What is your name?"

I stared at him in surprise. He hadn't changed emotion, hadn't altered his voice, yet now he was helping me. "…Arthur."

He pulled a radio out of his pocket. "Casino, are the civilians unharmed? I have someone who is looking for a Moemon. Ask if there is a Moemon who knows an Arthur." After a moment, he nodded. "A Moemon has come forward. She says she's yours."

"What's her name?" I felt my heart racing.

"The Moemon's name?" Greg asked into the radio. He looked at me. "Christine."

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy

Eric:

Helen the Drowzee


	8. Chapter 7: Greg

Greg put the radio down and looked at me. "Tell me, Arthur, what you are doing in this city?"

I stared at this strange man who just gave me my Moemon without asking anything in return. "Looking for my Moemon," I replied. I wanted to express my gratitude, but I was too wise to assume that he was just giving me a gift. He wanted something, even if he wasn't saying it now.

This man was the leader of the most dangerous gang in the city. The Celadon Saviors started the first Celadon War by attacking the police station, and had to have been the ones who blew up the school and killed Jennifer Gordon. They were the initiators, the ones who wanted the wars in the first place. And they were winning. They were huge threats, and I was talking to their leader, potentially the most dangerous man in the city.

"That is not the only reason," said Greg, shaking his head slowly. "No Moemon is worth traversing a battlefield."

"My Moemon are worth it," I said defiantly. "I'd risk my life for them!"

"I cannot believe that. Moemons aren't human; they are not worth human lives."

I glared at him. That explained the position of the Celadon Saviors. If their leader thought so little of Moemon, then no wonder the entire gang wanted Moemon to remain servants.

Greg smirked in response. "You don't agree. You, a Challenger, don't believe that humans are superior to Moemon."

"What does me being a Challenger have to do with anything?" I asked.

"Jared told me that the world he comes from has no such thing as Moemon," Greg replied. "And his world was superior to ours. Other Challengers throughout the years have told me the same. A world in which Moemon do not exist is superior to a world in which Moemon do. The logic dictates that Moemon are the problem that causes this discrepancy."

I hesitated. This world had so many problems, but the problems weren't much different from my world's. I didn't necessarily disagree with the other Challengers, but I disagreed with Greg, and that was why I made an argument.

"My world sucks too," I said. "It isn't superior. It has tons of problems too."

"I wouldn't expect it to be a utopia; however, I trust the words of numerous Challengers over the words of one who had defiance in his eyes the moment I revealed my prejudice." He saw right through me; he read me extremely well. "I have known more intelligent men far longer than I've known you."

"Must you?" Mary Beth asked. "He escaped the dangers of the streets only to get berated by you in here."

"I give him a gift as a sincere apology for his loss, yet he stands defiantly willing to lie to my face. He speaks too recklessly."

"Apology?" Mary Beth repeated. "You're admitting fault? That's unlike you."

"For Karen's actions. He should be out in this war in his fruitless mission, but he is here because of her, so I'll apologize on behalf of her."

"Of course." Mary Beth nodded.

"Why are you talking to him?" I asked her. "You're a hostage."

"She is free to leave when she likes," Greg intervened. "She stays because she enjoys our talks."

I gave him a disbelieving glance, but looking back at Mary Beth I noticed her nodding in confirmation.

"It's just a shame that Kevin couldn't be here as well," Mary Beth said wishfully.

"I extended the invitation to him as well. He must be needed on the field if he hasn't arrived."

"Or he thinks it's a trap," I muttered.

To my surprise, Mary Beth giggled, and Greg's mouth crawled up into a smirk.

"As I have said, he speaks too recklessly," said Greg. "He speaks as if he knows this situation."

"He is a teenager," Mary Beth agreed, chuckling.

I watched them strangely. They spoke as if they had been friends for years. But they were enemies in a civil war; their own armies were dying trying to fight each other. They even smiled at each other!

"What the…" I sputtered. "What is going on?"

"Don't read too much into it, dear," said Mary Beth sweetly. "We have been acquaintances for many years."

"Then why are you fighting!" I demanded.

"Because we disagree on nearly every issue," answered Greg. "And our men despise each other because of this. Our associations are all founded upon completely different ideas. They naturally fight."

"They're dying!" I shouted. Greg looked to the side and shook his head subtly; his men had their weapons trained on me because of this outburst. "Your people, the people who apparently look up to you, are fighting and dying because of this war! You cannot be friends!"

"Why not?" asked Greg. "We are both strong, intelligent people. We respect one another greatly and can distinguish the person from the idea. Why can't we be friends?"

"Because you're on the opposite side of a war, and people are dying because of you!" I turned to Mary Beth, whose expression darkened. "How could you possibly laugh?"

"We've been preparing for this war for years, Arthur. It was inevitable. As I have said, I have no control over the Mewtwo's Apostles. They are going to die no matter what I do. I can do nothing but sit up here and wait for the outcome. I have to laugh, because otherwise I'd cry."

"I invited her here for many reasons," added Greg. "One of which was to speak to her as we have for years, and another was to distract her from the horror below. It was hard for you, a young boy, to experience the war. Think of how terrible it would be for a kind and caring woman like Mary Beth. I had to rescue her from it out of respect."

I stood in silence, unable to comprehend how these two could just ignore what's going on in the city, just speaking casually to one another while thousands are dying in the streets. I couldn't accept their reasons; I couldn't accept that these two would be so callous toward the people who thought of them as leaders and so willing to throw aside everyone who loved them if it meant they could ignore the terrors they themselves created. They defended their actions as if their actions were defendable.

Greg took advantage of my incredulous silence to change the subject. "We never met before the Celadon War, did we?"

Mary Beth shook her head. "We met a week after it officially started. I was furious at you."

"I still remember the fire in your eyes back then," Greg chuckled. "One of the few times I feared for my life."

"Back then, you still showed regret for your actions."

"You still had the respect of your Moemon." Greg retorted.

Mary Beth smiled sadly. "Six years is a long time. I have gotten far older than I'd like. And you less emotional."

"I am a businessman," Greg replied. "One of the purest; profits above all. Only Karen can move me; no other lives matter to me."

"No one else."

"No one else." Greg echoed. "I haven't spoken to Kevin in ages. I wonder how he is taking in this war of ours."

"As well as you, if I'd guess," answered Mary Beth. "All three of us met that first time. Before then, we were just faces plastered on walls. We didn't understand each other before then."

"No. In fact, I'm sure you despised me for starting it."

"I still do," said Mary Beth. "I don't know why you had to start this war while I was still alive. You couldn't have waited until I'd passed away?"

"That's not the first time you've accused me of blowing up the school," said Greg. "I can assure you that it was not me nor my men."

"I can't believe you."

"I understand why. I'm sure Kevin – if he is not to blame – believes the same." Greg had gotten to his feet and was pacing the floor, staring out the window. "Everyone believes the Celadon Saviors are the true evil who destroyed the school and killed Jennifer Gordon. I have no proof to the contrary other than my word, and my reputation has prevented my word from meaning much."

"Then who do you think did it?" asked Mary Beth.

"A dissenter," Greg replied. "The explosives that were found are far more powerful – and expensive – than anything I would ever use. Whoever did it was not under my authority, and that is all I am sure of."

"Kevin may be able to provide an answer."

Greg shook his head. "Kevin is a politician. He will tell us that it was not him, and we will not be able to discern if he's lying. We will gain nothing in that regard."

"You said it yourself!" I shouted. "You're a businessman! It'd cut into your profits if people knew you planted the bomb. Your words are just as unbelievable!"

Greg turned to me, looking somewhat surprised. I'd been quiet for so long that they'd forgotten about me. "A shrewd observation. Did you know, Arthur, that wars are incredibly profitable? I did. That – along with the naïve idea that I was more intelligent than my adversaries – was what led me to starting the Celadon War six years ago. I ordered the attack on the police station to prevent their immediate intervention, and then I attacked the Kanto Kings and Mewtwo's Apostles while they were still trying to understand what had happened. I expected them to be unable to defend themselves, and the war to be won within a day. But I underestimated them, Arthur, and I suffered. I was beaten on both fronts and forced to admit defeat. I'd paid for my foolishness with everything, all because I wanted to reap the profits of controlling the entire city."

"You should be dead…" I whispered. I was in complete shock. "Or in jail or… you shouldn't be in power!"

"The police couldn't touch me then, and I have given millions toward rebuilding the city. I've paid my dues. However, if you truly wish me dead, then I have several friends who would say otherwise."

I didn't even need to turn around; I could feel the rifles trained on the back of my head. I just glared at him, almost daring him to give them the order. He only seemed amused by my defiance.

"Your friend will be here soon," Greg smiled. "Keep silent, and you'll be able to leave with her when she arrives."

"Arthur, please, there's no reason to have these outbursts," said Mary Beth.

"Whatever…" I muttered, flopping into the empty sofa chair. These two people… they were monsters. They were talking so freely about the terrible things they'd done; they had no shame, no regret. They talked of the Celadon War as if it was a pleasant experience, not that it was a civil war in which thousands died.

Little of what they said was new to me. I'd read all most of the events leading up to the war in the book in my backpack. The subject matter didn't bother or surprise me. It was the attitude they had when discussing this. It was infuriating.

"That was Jared's smartest move," said Greg. "Inviting the three of us to the Moemon Gym. We never would have met without him."

"Erika is such a sweet thing," added Mary Beth. "Making us tea and biscuits while we spoke."

"I still believe her incense manipulated us into being calm as we spoke," said Greg. "She unintentionally saved my life from you and Kevin."

"Perhaps that's why Kevin hasn't arrived," Mary Beth suggested. "We aren't in neutral territory."

"I told the envoy to ask him if he wanted to suggest an alternate meeting place," said Greg. "The envoy likely never made it to him."

"That is some impressive forethought."

"Kevin always was uneasy meeting in this tower. Maybe he hates heights, or maybe he never truly trusted me."

"Imagine that," Mary Beth chuckled.

Greg opened his mouth to respond, but a metallic groaning behind us got his attention. His eyes moved from the elevator to me. "Your friend is here."

I got to my feet and ran to the elevator doors. The men stared at me, but I kept my eyes only on the crack in the doors. I could feel my heart beating faster and harder; I grabbed Bailey's wrist to keep steady. Her arm was cold. It made me even more excited for the warmth.

The elevator came to a stop, and the doors struggled to open, held in place by the bars. I made a motion to move the bars, but the men held my arms down.

"It's Karen," came the woman's voice from inside. "I have a present."

"Why is Karen the one bringing your Moemon?" Greg muttered. "Open the doors."

The men opened the doors, and Karen jumped in surprise seeing me so close. "You're eager," she noted, stepping past me.

And then there, standing at the back of the elevator, was my Christine. She looked as strong as ever, glaring suspiciously at the back of Karen's head as she walked away. Then her eyes turned to me, and her face broke into a bright smile. I walked into the elevator and grabbed her, hugged her as tightly as I could. Her warmth was the greatest gift I'd ever been given. The warmth of her body against mine, the warmth of her arms wrapped around me, and the warmth of her face pressed against me. We didn't say anything as we stood in each other's arms. We didn't need to. Everything we could've said was said through our embrace. We stood in that elevator for millennia enjoying the touch of a friend.

When we broke apart, still keeping at arm's length, just smiling at each other, Bailey grabbed us and pulled us from the elevator. As we spoke, the doors closed, and the elevator descended.

"Bailey," Christine gasped in surprise. "You're here! You found him!"

"She saved me," I said. "I'd be dead if it wasn't for her."

"Thank you," said Christine, beaming. "Thank you for saving him." Bailey nodded silently.

"What happened to you?" I asked. "Do you know what happened to the others?"

"I was in the crowd while Mayor Porter was talking," explained Christine. "I saw them take you away. I tried to follow, but then there was a lot of shooting. I had to hide. There were a lot of us in the apartment building I hid in, most of them wearing red. They thought I was one of them, so they took me to the casino. I was hiding there, waiting for everything to calm down, when they called for me. I couldn't believe it! I thought…"

"It doesn't matter," I whispered, bringing her in for another hug. "It doesn't matter what you thought. We're together. We found each other."

"But the others," Christine whispered. "The others are still out there."

"They're strong," I said. I continued with a reassuring lie, "I never doubted for a second that I'd find all of you. We'll find them eventually. We'll be leaving soon."

"It's awful out there," she muttered. "So many screams."

"I know, I know," I said reassuringly.

"Well, what happened to you?" Christine asked. "What are you doing here? Why are you still in the city?"

I smiled. I'd tell her the whole story later. "Searching for all of you."

* * *

As we reentered the room, we noticed Karen had taken the empty seat. The three of them were hunched over, whispering quickly, serious expressions on their faces. Greg noticed us enter and waved us over, making the other two stare at us as we approached.

"You look much happier," Greg noted.

I was smiling for the first time in ages. "Thank you," I said sincerely. I could ignore everything he said to me for this. He'd given me what I wanted. Now it was my turn to listen to his desire.

"You still have others you're looking for?" He asked. I nodded. "An entire team, I would assume. You were separated – Mary Beth explained – at Mayor Porter's speech in Kanto King's territory. It's likely that they're all still trapped in that territory, or they've been evacuated. Nevertheless, you being here is unnecessary."

Greg motioned to Karen, who seemed annoyed. "My wife will escort you across territories. Once both of you are there, you'll no longer have our help. You'll search for them on your own. It's more than you deserve; be grateful."

I couldn't help the feeling that I'd simply passed them over. After all, I hadn't looked anywhere in the Celadon Saviors' territory. But I knew arguing with him would accomplish nothing, so I just nodded.

Greg looked moderately surprised that I wasn't putting up a fight. "You'll leave immediately. Safe travels, Challenger."

* * *

Karen, Christine, Bailey, and I exited the building. As soon as the front doors slid open, the sounds of war made themselves known. At the first scream, I felt my stomach drop. It had been so quiet for so long, I'd nearly forgotten how terrible they were. My grip on Christine's arm tightened automatically, and I felt her grip tighten in response. I wouldn't be letting go.

"What are you going to be doing while we're over there?" I asked, trying to distract myself. I guessed that Karen had another reason for crossing to the Kanto Kings' territory. Greg wouldn't risk his wife's life just for me.

"I will be determining the fate of the envoy we sent yesterday," Karen replied. I was surprised to hear an actual answer; she must have been distracted herself. "I'll be speaking with Kevin himself."

"What about the armies?" I asked. "Aren't you in command?"

"Command falls to my second," she replied. "Neither of us are worried about them falling in my absence."

"How are we getting across?"

"Leave that to me," she said, taking a few forceful steps ahead. I took that as a sign that she didn't want to speak anymore.

"We're going to find them," said Christine. She looked at me and smiled. "You're right, Arthur."

I smiled back. "There's no reason to doubt them. They're all strong."

"We're going to be even stronger soon," she reminded me. "We're going to evolve."

Evolution… "Even now you're focused on getting stronger," I said, shaking my head. "You're unbelievable, sometimes."

"But it's true," she said insistently. "I can feel it!"

She was right. In fact, before we had entered Celadon City, before we had met Eric and Mayor Porter in the Underground Path, I had planned on evolving everyone. Those plans had been postponed; no one was doing any training anytime soon.

"Not right now," I said. "Not before we find everyone."

"Of course," Christine giggled. "I'm not going to leave everyone behind. How's everyone else? Quinton and Eric?"

"We were separated as well," I said. "Quinton escaped the city with his Moemon. Eric's in the Department Store."

"And everyone else?"

I grimaced. "They're praying for us."

"Where are they?" Christine asked. "Show me your watch."

I held out my arm, and she held it steady as she fiddled with the watch. "Are you worried they're catching up with us?"

"That's why we left in the first place," she explained. "We only have a few days… oh, good, they're all still in Vermilion City."

"So there's no need to worry," I said. "We still have our lead."

"We won't have it for long," she said. "They're going to catch up with us."

"Yeah, I know," I sighed. "There's nothing we can do. When we leave the city, we won't be let back in. Who knows how long we'll have to wait before the gym's open to the public."

"We could fight her before we leave," Christine suggested.

"I don't think they're accepting gym challenges during a civil war," I said. "They mentioned that the gym was a neutral area in the last war. It's probably the same now. Their only concern is helping civilians."

Christine nodded, looking defeated. I wasn't too concerned about the other Challengers. I hoped they would sympathize with me after hearing that I survived a warzone. I'd deal with them when I met them face to face.

"You are very single-minded," noted Bailey, looking at Christine with amusement. She glared back at her.

"Why did you leave the others?" She demanded. "You were supposed to stay in the building."

"I was looking for him," Bailey replied. "I found him. Where were you?"

"I was watching over him," she muttered. "Making sure he was safe."

"You did a good job of that. He was kidnapped under your watch, sent all over the city."

"I wasn't able to follow him like you," Christine said defensively. "I can't turn invisible."

"Which means you failed," said Bailey flatly.

"Don't fight," I warned. "This is not the time to fight! We're all we have!"

Christine shot Bailey a dark glance, but she kept her mouth shut. Bailey merely smiled and did the same. I was glad they left it at that. I didn't expect them to get along; they'd only known each other a few days, and they certainly hadn't survived together. I just wanted them to keep from fighting each other until we were safe.

That outburst had killed the conversation, and we moved in silence. The gunfire and shouting were getting louder and louder, so we knew we were approaching the western front lines. Karen's pace had quickened, and she was moving with emboldened purpose. As the sounds of the front lines grew deafening, she began to sprint. We could barely keep up.

She turned the corner and ran straight down the street. We were only two blocks from the front lines, and stray bullets managed to ricochet off bricks nearby. I stopped Christine and Bailey and moved a block east so that we were safe enough. Karen, however, wasn't affected in the slightest, still striding ahead. We tried to keep her within sight as we followed her south down the line.

Miraculously, after traveling south for several minutes and nearing the main street of the city, we found Karen shouting and gesticulating angrily at a cowering man. She glanced at us as we approached, scoffing and snatching a megaphone from the man's outstretched hands.

"This," Karen said, clearly aggravated. "Was my second in command. I taught him a lesson about leadership. If he doesn't learn, he soon will."

With barely a glance at the man on his knees, she moved the megaphone to her face and shouted, "Marcus! It's Karen! I want to parley!"

Her voice echoed across the battlefield. There was noticeably less gunfire in the few seconds after she spoke from confused soldiers, then it continued. We waited several minutes with no luck.

Then: "Fine, Karen. Let's parley."

Karen smiled in satisfaction. "Seize fire, Celadon Saviors!"

Immediately, the red side stopped shooting. A similar order was given on the green side, and for the first time in ages there was silence. I could hardly believe it.

Karen thrusted the megaphone back into the man's hands. "When I'm safely over, don't let up until I announce my return."

"Yes, ma'am," The man nodded, looking at her knees.

Karen rolled her eyes and motioned for me to follow her. "We're leaving, Arthur."

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy

Eric:

Helen the Drowzee


	9. Chapter 8: Kanto Kings

The four of us approached the front lines as hundreds of eyes followed us. Signs of battle were everywhere: cars parked on the streets were riddled with bullets, the walls used for cover had been whittled away to nothing, and bodies sprawled across the street. We stepped through an alley past three men glued to the corner, guns held at their side.

Karen made no hesitation as she came through the alley, but I didn't have that bravery. Only a few moments ago, both sides were in the middle of nonstop firing, and we only had the word of this unknown Marcus that we wouldn't get riddled the moment we stepped onto the street. I barely trusted Karen's men to obey her order and not fire on us.

Karen must have known I'd have cold feet, because she turned around before coming out of the alley, her face scrunched in annoyance. "Get over here, or you'll never see your Moemon! I'm not waiting for you to grow a pair!"

"Fuck…" I muttered to myself. I hated that I was being berated by her. It was like she didn't fully comprehend that we were stepping out into no man's land. That we were just a single twitch of a finger away from dying. So many people were staring at me, no doubt wondering whether I was worth such special privilege. I had no choice, and it was so frustrating that I was being put in this position.

So I moved forward, and Karen continued on her way. As we stepped onto the street, three men came out of the shadows on the other side. All three wore green three-piece suits and green fedoras and carried weapons that looked strikingly like Tommy Guns. The suits looked nearly identical to Karen's, and it was noteworthy that most of the Kanto Kings in sight wore suits. The Celadon Saviors, comparatively, were severely underdressed in their red blood-stained hoodies and cargo shorts.

The middle man walked up to us with a handsome grin on his face. He was tall and muscular and young with a chiseled face and five o' clock shadow. He removed his fedora, revealing sleeked black hair that perfectly complimented his appearance.

"Morning, Karen," he said in a grizzled voice, looking her up and down. "You look well suited for this war."

"You look out of your element," she replied, unimpressed. She nodded to me. "I have civilians I need to transfer over the lines."

"That all?" Marcus frowned. "Doesn't seem that much of a reason to parley. You know how hard it is to get every soldier in a three-mile radius to stop killing each other?"

"It isn't hard for us," Karen said. "We respect the chain of command."

Marcus chuckled. "So do we. Some of us have our own ideas of the chain, though."

"Then you have terrible, unfit leaders."

"Touché."

"I'm coming over as well," Karen added, and at that Marcus's eyes lit up with excitement. "I need to speak with your father."

Marcus's eyes dropped the glow just as quickly. "Of course you do. Well, I can take you to him if you'd like." He winked. "The famous Karen Donavan needs a personal escort."

Karen scoffed. "You sure your army will be able to survive without your guidance?"

"They'll manage," Marcus shrugged. He motioned for us to follow him and turned around. Karen stayed by his side, and the rest of us stepped quickly.

It was a miracle that both sides held their fire until we crossed the street. We made it to the Kanto Kings' side unharmed. We barely turned the corner before the firing resumed. I jumped in surprise as bullets ricocheted off the wall behind us.

"Jesus Christ!" I shouted, ducking behind a nearby dumpster. "Give us a damn second!"

"We fired first," Karen said with a victorious smirk. She barely reacted otherwise.

"A small victory," Marcus replied, unconcerned. "Not an important one, though."

"How is your father?" Karen asked. "It's been so long since he's been over."

"He's doing well enough, given the circumstances. He's getting too old for war," Marcus sighed. "But you Saviors just keep starting shit."

"We didn't start this war," said Karen darkly, dropping behind him. "Be careful what you say about us. I would not hesitate to put you down if you insult us."

But Marcus didn't seem afraid. He slowed to let her catch up. "Maybe you didn't start the war, and it was the Apostles who did. What does it matter? We're all suffering. You know he hates fighting. He's a politician, not a soldier."

"So he says," said Karen.

"You think he enjoys all of this?" Marcus asked.

"He should enjoy the power he has as leader of the Kanto Kings," said Karen. "He enjoyed winning the last war."

"He hated that the Celadon War even happened! He only did what he had to do to keep our organization alive."

"He manipulated Jared into choosing the winner."

"Careful, Karen. I like you, but I won't hesitate either."

Karen suddenly stopped and turned to me. "Alright, Arthur, this is where we part ways. Go to the Department Store first. They'll likely be there."

Marcus looked at her curiously. "That's where we're heading, though. My father is there."

She turned back to him in disbelief. "He isn't in your house?"

Marcus smiled sadly. "He vowed not to hide anymore while others were dying. He's comforting the civilians too scared to leave."

"Never mind, Arthur," Karen shrugged. "We'll stay together for now."

"You sound like you want to get rid of me," I said cheekily, trying to regain my composure after that bullet scare.

Karen bit her lip, as if trying to resist telling me that that was exactly what she wanted. Marcus seemed to sense this and steered the conversation elsewhere.

"What about Greg? We haven't heard from him in a while."

"You should've heard," said Karen, suspiciously. "We sent an envoy yesterday."

"He didn't tell me anything about it. Maybe he couldn't make it over the lines. Maybe he just ran away."

"Or maybe he was killed after delivering the message," suggested Karen. "It doesn't matter. I'll ensure that the message gets delivered."

"You could leave the message with me," Marcus offered.

"You know that isn't going to happen."

"Must be an important message."

"Important enough that I'm needed," said Karen, her voice betraying a hint of pride. "We don't need you to escort us."

"We aren't exactly escorting you," Marcus admitted. "A high ranking Celadon Savior crossed into our territory. We need to watch you to make sure you don't do anything."

"As if you could stop me."

We were moving North. Marcus explained that the police station just south of the main street was the headquarters of most of the police department, and they'd set up a wide perimeter around it.

"They have a habit of shooting first," Marcus added bitterly. "So we keep a wide berth."

"The Kanto Kings are scared of the police?" Karen asked amusedly.

"They aren't enemies, yet. We'd like to keep it that way."

Then we moved West, and then South. It took us nearly an hour to reach the Department Store. It was easy enough to see; it was the largest building in the city, standing several dozen stories above the neighboring buildings. It also seemed to be the center of the Kanto Kings' operations, as hundreds of soldiers were guarding it and the surrounding area.

"Also," Marcus added as we were approached by a patrol of men. "You need me to get in. They definitely wouldn't let you in, Karen."

Marcus stepped away and talked to the men, and a few seconds later we continued on our way. It looked like an army of well-dressed men and women had made their base here. It was extremely similar to the Celadon Saviors' operation: people scattered around the area in groups, many hunched over maps discussing battle strategies, others sitting on benches and resting, and many more grouped up to move to the front lines. These were the most serious looking of them all. A platoon was shipping off as we reached the building; many of them had looks of horror on their faces. Some were stone-faced and others betrayed excitement, and not a single one of them was happy to face this war.

"Good luck, Kings," Marcus said, his hand resting on his heart. "Give them Hell!"

They stared at him. Some seemed to calm down, but most of them were too preoccupied or too far gone to be reassured. Marcus didn't look concerned, though, smiling as we watched them leave.

"They don't respect you," Karen noted.

"They're scared. It's war. I don't expect them to love me for wishing them luck. I want them to know that I respect them."

We were approached by two other sets of guards as we neared the store. Marcus' presence made them wave us through without much trouble, and soon we were inside the store itself.

As expected, the first floor covered in green. Green wallpaper, green carpet, green signs declaring "WELCOME TO THE CELADON CITY DEPARMENT STORE", and green-clothed people. It was so packed with soldiers that there was only one clear path which went to the escalator in the middle of the room. Men patted Marcus on the back and congratulated him. Some stopped him to give him inaudible messages. Some even welcomed Karen to the store.

It took longer than expected to traverse the room, but we reached the escalator without too many delays. The escalator was out of order, so we climbed the steps to the second floor. A barricade of desks had been erected at the top of the stairs, and three older men were guarding it. Thanks to Marcus, we were able to enter the floor.

This one looked more like a traditional mall. There were no shops or stalls on the first, but the second floor was lined with them. There were numerous stores selling a variety of products: clothing, jewelry, books, adventuring supplies. Most of them were closed and barricaded with metal barriers, and the few that weren't shuttered were empty. Here, far fewer soldiers congregated. Most of the people scattered across the floor were older people watching us sadly; they certainly weren't soldiers.

"Mr. Marcus," an elder gentleman came forward, stopping us. His wife clutched onto his arm. "Is the war over? Can we leave?"

Marcus frowned and placed a gentle hand on the elder man's shoulder. "Unfortunately, this war is far from over. You are safe, though, I promise you."

"I don't worry about my safety," the elder man replied. "I worry about the safety of all of the young men and women dying for no reason."

"They're dying for what they believe in," said Marcus.

"What do they believe in?"

"Freedom and equality for all, Moemon and human alike. The greatest cause to die for."

"That is the belief of the Kanto Kings," the elder man argued. "That is not the belief of the men and women dying."

"Those men and women are the Kanto Kings. We would be nothing without them."

"Perhaps we should be nothing if we're willing to sacrifice their lives for nothing."

"When we win, we will have all of the power of this city," said Marcus. "We will have so much power and influence that we will be able to push our beliefs unopposed. Their lives will not be lost for no reason. The Kanto Kings will ensure that everyone has the best possible future."

"Those are only promises. There are no guarantees. The Kanto Kings will control the city if we win, but that does not guarantee that we will have any influence on the laws of the rest of the region."

"We are the center of laws in this region. We've pushed many laws in the past six years, and that was with only half the city's power. With the entire city under our control, we will guarantee equality for everyone."

The elder man didn't pursue the issue. He only stared disappointedly at Marcus until the latter simply smiled in satisfaction and left. The elder man met my eyes, and I noticed a lot of pain. He must have friends and family fighting on the streets, and he was worried for their safety.

We moved to the stairs, and I tapped Karen's arm. She turned to me, and I asked her: "Is that the same goal the Celadon Saviors have when they win?"

"We don't want equality," Karen reminded me. "We understand human superiority. We'd push our ideas."

"But using all the influence of Celadon City to do that…"

"That's what we'd do," Karen confirmed.

"You want to talk about pointless dying," said Marcus, giving Karen a sly grin. "Look at the Celadon Saviors. Their views were outdated decades ago. Nobody aside from them believes that humans are superior. They'd never get any support even with all of Celadon City supporting them."

"You really think not a single human thinks he's better than a Moemon?" asked Karen. "You're dumber than I thought."

"I guarantee that no normal human does," said Marcus smugly. "From everything I've seen, I'd rather throw my hat in with the Mewtwo's Apostles over you guys. Moemon are much more powerful than us. I'd say we're lucky that they'd agree to equality."

"You overestimate Moemon," Karen muttered.

"I'd say you underestimate us," Christine chimed in. Karen turned to her curiously.

"Can you beat a bullet?" Karen asked. "Or a rocket? Or a grenade?"

"I don't have to, if I could kill you before you used them."

"A pillar of flame that you can outrun," Karen held one palm out to her side, then she put the other palm out, weighing the options. "Versus a bullet which you can't. I'm not concerned."

I placed a calming hand on Christine's shoulder. This wasn't our fight. Thankfully, she dropped the issue, and her input distracted Karen and Marcus from their own argument. We continued up the stairs.

The next three floors were completely empty. Soldiers hadn't even bothered putting up barricades. There were no civilians walking around and no soldiers guarding the entrance. There were only the abandoned shops.

It was completely quiet on the third and fourth floors, but on the fifth we could hear the faint echoes of conversation from above. As we reached the sixth floor, the source of the noise became obvious. The floor was just as crowded as the first floor.

This was a far more diverse crowd than I was expecting: a mixture of colors representing all three gangs. Reds mixed with blues and blues mixed with greens. The majority were children and elder people; refugees from the war unwilling or unable to evacuate. These civilians didn't care about the war or the politics; they only wanted safety. Some of them huddled together and spoke in whispers. Most were sitting facing the center where a middle-aged man was standing, staring at him as if he was a beacon of hope in this bleakness.

The man in question was dressed in the typical Kanto King garb sans the hat, revealing a head of thin white hair. He was chubby and jolly; his face was wrinkled but his eyes kind and tired. He smiled kindly and warmly, and his voice was calm and soothing. He was in the middle of telling a story as we approached.

"Of course," the man said, smiling nostalgically. "My son was such a charmer when he was a boy. When I introduced him to young teenaged Erika, he walked right up to her, smiled, and asked, 'do you have a boyfriend?'"

As the crowd laughed, Marcus put his head in his palm and groaned, "He's telling this story again? I was five…"

The man waited for the laughter to subside and continued, "And young, gentle Erika, not willing to break my son's heart, replies, 'I don't. Do you have a girlfriend?'

"'My son grins and says, 'Of course I do!'"

The man smiled. "He didn't."

Marcus bit down on his fist to stifle his anguish. "Shut up old man," he whispered. "Don't say anymore!"

Karen grinned at him. "I didn't know you were such a ladies man!"

Marcus glared daggers at her.

"Erika is taken aback, of course," the man continues. "She asks him, 'Is she pretty?' And my son replies, 'She's beautiful.'"

"No…" Marcus moaned. "No more."

"'What's her name?' Erika asks. And then my son puffs his chest out proudly, gives Erika the widest grin imaginable, and says, 'Erika'"

And the crowd howled with laughter. Marcus made a motion to leave the floor, but the man reached his arm out toward us and gave us a wide grin.

"And here is the ladies' man himself!" He said. "Come here, son, and give your hilarious old man a hug!"

"God damn it," Marcus sighed, smiling despite himself. He waved at the audience as they clapped and cheered, and he came forward and brought his father in for a hug.

"I hope you weren't too embarrassed," The man chuckled. "I've been telling them a lot about you."

"Just make sure none of the soldiers hear them," Marcus replied.

"I wouldn't dream of it."

The two made a path through the crowd toward us. He shook our hands with a jovial smile. I found myself liking this man and his carefree attitude. It was certainly a surprise to realize that this was the leader of Kanto Kings. Compared to Greg and Mary Beth, Kevin was completely disconnected with the horrors of the war. It was as if it was just another day to him, and he was to make the best of it.

"It's been a while, Karen," Kevin said. "How is Greg?"

"He's doing well," Karen replied. "He wanted to speak with you."

Kevin sighed. "Of course he would. We'll have our conversation soon enough." He turned to me. "Don't be alarmed, boy, but I'm far more interested in you."

I blinked, taken aback. "Wait… why?"

"Not many people are given a personal escort by two commanders of this city's numerous armies." Kevin's eye gleamed. "You're special."

"He's not special," said Karen, quickly. "Greg had no use for him, and he's looking for his Moemon. It was an opportune moment for both of us."

But Kevin wasn't perturbed. "I recognize you. You were another of the boys seated behind Mayor Porter before all of this chaos began." His smile widened once I nodded. "You're friends with Eric, correct?"

My heart jolted at the mention of him. "I am," I lied. "Is he here? Is he safe?" He never answered his watch. I was worried he'd been taken hostage.

"He's here," Kevin replied. "He's safe. We've been taking care of him ever since this began."

"Where is he?" I asked. "Can you take me to him?"

"He is on the eighth floor with the other wounded," Kevin replied. He quickly backpedaled once he saw my dismay. "He hasn't been physically wounded. We don't believe his mind is the same. He repeats the same phrases. 'Mayor Porter', 'Sarah, I'm sorry', 'I want to go home'. I fear being so close to the assassination broke him."

At the mention of Sarah, Christine gripped my arm. I didn't need the reminder. Hearing that Eric was in such poor condition made me feel awful. I wanted nothing more than to see him, to talk to him again. I wanted to make sure he was okay, make sure he could get out of the city. I wanted to make up everything to him. Everything I'd done and everything I'd regretted.

And the next word made me forget all about that.

"Arthur!" Came a high-pitched cheer from the crowd. I recognized the voice immediately, and I turned toward the sound, my heart beating out of my chest. A young girl pushed her way forward until she was in clear view, and then she leapt into my arms.

I grabbed Annie and gave her a tight hug. I couldn't believe it. She was here! She was safe! "Annie," I smiled. "I'm so… you're okay… you're…"

"Arthur!" Annie cried with joy. "You're still here! You came for us!"

"Of course we did," I said. Christine pulled us in and joined our hug, and the three of us stayed like that while the crowd looked on. I barely paid attention to them, though; my attention was focused only on the girls I was hugging. On my family.

"Us," Bailey repeated behind us, staring at us as we hugged. "Who else is with you?"

Annie looked at me with a bright smile. "Olivia and Rose!"

"What? Where are they?" I asked.

"They're on the eighth floor," Annie replied.

I didn't wait for another word. I ran through the crowd toward the stairs and rocketed up them, taking them two steps at a time. I barely paid attention to the seventh floor; there weren't enough people to worry about running into. It was the eighth floor I had my sights on.

The eighth was surprisingly quiet considering how many people were there. Five rows of several dozen hospital beds, most of which were occupied, took up the majority of the floor. Men and women dressed in pure white were helping to comfort and heal the resting patients. Most of the patients were alone, but a few were surrounded by numerous friends and family.

Eric was sleeping on one of the beds in the corner away from the other families. As I approached him, I saw that three girls were watching him. One of those girls was his own Moemon – Helen – while the other two were my own.

They sensed me approaching and turned around defensively, keeping him guarded. Then they noticed it was me, and they sprinted toward me. The two of them completely overwhelmed me, and as they cried we all fell to the ground in a pile.

"You're still alive!" Olivia shouted. "I can't believe… after what happened… we completely lost you!"

"I know, I know," I said. "I'm so glad you all stuck together! I'm so proud of you guys!"

"Have you seen the others?" Rose asked. "Do you know where they are?"

"Christine and Bailey are with me. They should be here soon."

"Christine! Bailey!" Olivia shouted, looking up and seeing that the girls had followed me. Christine didn't bother letting us get to our feet; she dived onto us. And that was where we rested, the five of us, a family nearly brought back together. Bailey was off to the side being herself and refusing to show any signs of compassion.

I found five of my Moemon. I couldn't believe it. I was so close to doing to the impossible, to finding my team in this city. I just needed one more. Stacy was still out there. She was strong; I had all the faith in the world that she was alive and well. I just hoped that I could find her as well.

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy

Eric:

Helen the Drowzee


	10. Chapter 9: Celadon Department Store

Our reunion was far too short. Just a few minutes later, we got to our feet and calmed down enough to exchange stories. Olivia, Rose, and Annie had been escorted by the police to the Department Store as soon as they heard the shooting. They had tried to leave but had been warned to stay there until someone arrived. Chief Harmen had visited them once that night, telling all the other civilians who'd gathered to stay in the building until the war was over. Eric was brought in by a pair of soldiers shortly after that, but he was completely silent. He fell asleep sometime later and just didn't wake up.

"Eric hasn't moved since then," Rose said sadly, looking at the unconscious boy. "We've been keeping watch over him since he arrived."

Olivia patted Helen's head. The young Drowzee didn't join our pile. She sat at the foot of Eric's cot and stared at us confusedly. She looked up at Olivia, silently asking an explanation.

"Don't you remember when we entered the city?" asked Olivia. "He's our trainer."

"Oh…" Helen said quietly. Her confusion turned to apprehension. "Eric doesn't like him."

I couldn't meet her eye. He had good reason.

"But you're really nice," Helen continued, looking back to Olivia. "So if you like him, I'll like him."

It was more than I deserved. "I'm just glad you're all safe and that you all stuck together," I said. "You're all taking care of each other. It's the best news I've heard."

"Stacy left the building as soon as you did," said Rose. "Christine and Bailey soon after her. We were worried that you had all been injured in the fighting." She paused, hesitating. "We know what happened to Mayor Porter."

I nodded sullenly. "You didn't see what happened, did you?" I asked, hoping they hadn't.

To my relief, Rose shook her head. "We heard his voice… and then we heard the loud noise and the screaming. We didn't see it."

"Be glad you didn't," I said, grimacing. I patted Annie subconsciously. I was especially glad she didn't see anything. She didn't need to see more death. "You were here, safe."

"We wanted to search for you, but we had to stay together," said Rose suddenly, as if she was holding in a confession. Her eyes started to tear up as she clutched Olivia's free hand.

"Of course you did, of course," I said reassuringly. The guilt in her eyes was heart breaking. "You did nothing wrong, Rose. None of you did. You took care of everyone. You kept everyone safe. That's all I wanted."

Rose nodded, wiping the tear from her eye. Olivia giggled softly and pulled her in a side hug, rubbing her shoulder.

"Have you seen Stacy?" Annie asked, looking up at me. "Did she find her family?"

"We haven't," I replied. Then I paused. "Her family? They're here?"

"She mentioned they were before we reached the city," said Olivia. "She wanted to look for them while we were training. She's probably looking for them right now."

"Did she give you any hints for where they are?" I asked. "I don't know if I should go out there looking for her or wait for her to come to us."

The moment I mentioned leaving, Rose reached forward, took my arm, and held it tight. "You're not leaving again," she shouted in horror with tears in her eyes. "You're not leaving us! You're not going out there alone!"

I was horrified. "No, no," I said quickly. "I'm not leaving you. I didn't mean I was… I'm not…"

"He's not leaving," Christine said, patting Rose's shoulder. "Not without us."

Rose nodded, but she didn't let go. There was no trust in her eyes. Seeing that mistrust, that hurt, in her eyes made me realize how terrified they must have been. An entire night of listening to nothing but death and chaos and having no idea where their family was must have been horrifying. They looked as though they hadn't slept since this began.

I composed myself, looked directly into Rose's eyes, and said with complete and utter sincerity: "I won't leave this building without you. When we leave, we leave as a team."

Rose stared at me, and as she stared her eyes softened. She nodded and let go, turning around to wipe her eyes. I moved behind her and hugged her.

"Thank you so much for taking care of them," I said quietly. "You kept them together."

"It's… it's nothing…"

"Olivia, how is your eye?" I asked.

Olivia rubbed the eyepatch unconsciously. "We didn't have the medicine that nurse gave us, but they had a lot of supplies here. We changed the gauze a few hours ago. It doesn't hurt."

"I'll make sure to change it next time," I promised, squeezing Rose. "You make me more and more proud, girls. And Annie, how are you?"

"Kevin's really funny," Annie answered happily. "He told us a lot of stories about his family. I like him a lot!"

"I'm glad you feel that way, young girl," came Kevin's voice from behind us. I jumped. I wasn't paying attention; I didn't hear them coming. Kevin, Karen, and Marcus had finally reached our floor.

"Kevin!" Annie exclaimed. "You need to tell Arthur about your son's first crush!"

"So Erika wasn't your first, eh?" Karen grinned mischievously and nudged Marcus's shoulder. Marcus refused to give her a reaction.

"Later, child. I'm glad you enjoy my stories, but they will have to be put on hold for now."

"Why?' Annie complained.

"I'll be leaving soon," he replied. "I'd like to speak with your trainer, if you wouldn't mind."

I nodded and walked over to them. I could feel all of my Moemon watching me carefully. They didn't trust these people; they were willing to strike if I was attacked. Kevin placed his arm over my shoulder and leaned forward.

"Karen told me about your mission. It was extremely brave of you to search for them. You must love them very much."

"They're my family," I replied. "I'd do anything for them."

"I'm glad you were able to find them all, then."

"Not all of them," I corrected him. "I'm missing Stacy. She's still somewhere in the city."

"Oh, well in that case I wish you the best of luck in your remaining search. Karen also mentioned that you are a Challenger. I understand that you wish to remain neutral in this war, but if you wanted to know about the Kanto Kings' cause, I would be happy to inform you."

"Thanks for the offer, but I'll stay neutral."

"Of course. It's your wish. Then we have nothing more to discuss. Good luck, Challenger." He released his grip and extended his hand. He was stronger than I had expected, and he smiled pleasantly at me.

"You're all leaving?" I asked Karen and Marcus.

"I'm escorting Kevin back to Donavan Tower," Karen answered. "Good luck finding your last, Arthur."

"Good luck getting over the lines again."

Marcus grinned. "That's why I'm here. Gotta help her somehow." Before Karen could make a remark, Marcus stepped closer to me. "Listen, if you need help looking for her or getting out of the city, let me know. If I'm busy, let a soldier know that I need to know. You Challengers aren't part of our war, and you've suffered enough."

Kevin laughed heartily. "There's the diplomat in him. Offering help to anyone who needs it. You'll be a fine leader."

"Thank you," I said. "I'll be sure to let you know."

Marcus nodded and shook my hand. The three of them said their farewells and exited the room.

"Who was that girl?" Annie asked. "She looked nice."

"Nice is one word for it," I smiled uneasily. "But she could kick my ass without even trying. She's a tough woman."

"She also helped us get here," added Christine.

"Oh yeah, they've all been helpful," I said. "But we'll never see them again, and I'm okay with that."

"When are we going to search for Stacy?" asked Olivia.

My stomach suddenly rumbled violently. I couldn't remember the last time I ate something. "Not now. We need to eat."

* * *

We asked around and learned that breakfast was being served in a nearby building, so we left Eric to his cot to head down. A line had only just started gathering, so it didn't take long for us to grab our food. We had to convince the servers to give us an extra plate for Eric, and afterward we all headed right back up to the eighth floor of the Department Store.

"That was the first time we left the building," Rose admitted once we'd all seated. "It was a lot scarier than I thought it would be."

"We're lucky we have so much protection," I said through a mouthful of food. "The war is far away from us."

"It's still out there," Rose said defensively.

"It is," I agreed. "But we don't have to worry about it anymore."

"You went through the whole city," said Christine, looking at me with concern. "Even I felt terrified going back out there. How are you so calm?"

I stared at my plate. My hand was shaking uncontrollably, and I was hiding it by constantly moving it. I wasn't calm in the slightest. Even though we were safe, and even though we were together, I couldn't stay calm. I still heard the screams, still heard the gunfire; I still saw bullets ricocheting off brick, still saw the bodies lying in the streets, still saw the pools of blood; I still saw Mayor Porter and Blake and Derrick and all the hundreds of nameless men and women who'd given their lives. I was hiding my terror for my Moemon, to keep them as calm as possible in the face of these atrocities. I talked and talked to keep my mind occupied, to keep from thinking about everything I'd seen.

"I'm not sure," I said, shrugging. "I guess I'm calm because I have you guys."

"Arthur, you're the best!" Annie squealed. "I can't wait to evolve so I can be strong like you."

"You guys are going to evolve soon," I nodded. "That's going to be an exciting time."

"I hope we find Stacy in time," said Annie. "I don't want to evolve and have her not recognize me."

"We'll find her," I said confidently. "Or she'll find us. Either way, it'll be before you guys all evolve."

"Ooh!" Annie said suddenly. "What if Stacy's already evolved! She'd surprise us all!"

"I hope she doesn't," said Christine. "She can't get ahead of me. I have to evolve before her."

"Think if I evolve I'd grow a new eye?" Olivia asked, her voice a mixture of bitterness and hope.

"I've never heard of it," Rose admitted. "But maybe."

"I'm kidding," Olivia sighed, touching her eyepatch. "I've accepted my life now. I'll be the greatest one-eyed Moemon in the world."

"Are there many one-eyed Moemon?" asked Rose.

"I was hoping you'd know," said Olivia. "Stacy is worldlier than us. She'd know."

"That nurse didn't seem like she'd encountered any," I said, remembering her absolute panic upon seeing Olivia's unconscious body. I also recalled the many eyes Olivia got during the short trip for food, but I neglected to mention that. "I don't think Moemon ever get injured like that."

"Not by other Moemon. Our injuries aren't permanent," said Rose. "Unless our trainer is a Challenger."

Olivia must have wanted to change the subject, because she jumped on the last word. "Everyone's been talking about the Challengers in the city. We've heard a lot about this Jared person."

"Jared," I echoed the name in thought. "He played a large part in the Celadon War."

"You've heard of him too?" asked Rose.

I nodded. I reached into my backpack and pulled out the book Stacy had picked out for me back in the Cerulean City Library: _A History of the Celadon War_. There had been a large section dedicated to Jared, so I'd skimmed a bunch of his accomplishments before the war had even begun. I turned the page to the section and held it out for them to read. There was a photo in the top right corner of the page revealing a handsome man in his early twenties smiling with a young woman.

"He addressed a lot of concerns dealing with Moemon capture and battling," I read. "He gave numerous speeches on national television. He met with the old President to discuss potential legislature. He did charity work to help fund a Moemon protection foundation. He advocated Moemon equality."

"Sounds like an inspiration," said Rose.

"He sounds like a hero," added Helen.

"Amazing," Annie agreed.

I looked at their impressed faces and felt a tinge of jealousy. Everyone expected me to be as important and influential as Jared was, and when I wasn't the slightest bit interested in them they completely ignored me. I hurriedly took the book back into my arms, watching them closely.

"Something's bothering you," said Christine. "What's wrong?"

"You were there," I turned to Bailey. "You heard what Greg said about him. About how I wasn't like him."

Bailey simply stared at me, nodding slightly.

"It was the same with the Mewtwo's Apostles," I continued bitterly. "They took one look at me, saw that I wasn't the Challenger they needed, and left me to fend for myself. I wasn't useful to them, so they didn't care."

"You don't have to be useful to them, though," said Christine.

"I feel like I have to!" I tapped the book. "I feel like Jared set a standard for how Challengers should be. This guy's a hero! He'll be remembered for the rest of history for what he did."

"It isn't your fight," Christine reminded me.

"It wasn't his fight either," I argued. "He was a Challenger, which means he came from my world. He had as much of a reason to fight as I do, and he made the choice to make a difference." My own words were hurting me. "He's… he's a hero."

"He's a hero to them because of what he did for them," said Rose.

"What does that make me to them?" I asked. "I ignored their problems. I told them I didn't want to fight. I… I ran away from the fighting. Does that make me a coward?"

"You're not a coward!" Annie shouted defiantly. "You're a hero!"

"You're an idiot, not a coward," said Bailey. "A coward wouldn't risk his life like you have."

"You traveled across this whole city for us," said Olivia. "That's what a hero does!"

"No one will know what I did." I said. "No one will know I went through that hell."

"No one needs to know," argued Olivia. "Do you actually care what people here write about you?"

"It'd make me feel better," I admitted. "Knowing that some of my accomplishments were known."

"It never says Jared actually fought," said Rose, nodding at the book.

"It might," I said. "I never got that far."

"Whatever he did in the past shouldn't influence you," Rose continued. "Whatever these people do shouldn't concern you. As a Challenger, your one and only goal is to beat the Elite Four. Everything else – even this civil war – doesn't matter."

I stared at Rose. I wanted to believe her words. But that wasn't true. It couldn't. If this region didn't matter, if the people and places we pass didn't matter, then what was the point of this entire journey?

"You're a Challenger," said Rose. "Do you not remember that you have a bounty on your head? If you wish for everyone to know of your accomplishments, then everyone will also know that you are worth a lot of money. We have spent much of our time in secrecy for that very reason. We do not want people knowing who we are."

"The Bounty Hunters already do."

"The Bounty Hunters aren't the only ones we should fear," said Rose. "There is danger everywhere. Once this war ends and we're on our way, we will have to worry about the rest of the world watching us. We are not close to the end of this journey, and we have to be cautious about who we reveal our identities to."

"I know, I know, Rose," I sighed. "You're right. I'm sorry… I'm just trying to get my thoughts straight."

"We understand," said Christine quickly. "We're here for you."

"We're also here to keep you thinking about the goal," added Rose. "Even if that means explaining to you why you are wrong."

I smiled. "I'm sure Stacy would be saying the same thing."

"Just remember that this isn't our war, and we have no reason to care once we are safe," said Rose. "I am sorry to say, but your pride shouldn't matter. You don't have to be the type of hero to rush into battle. You can do nothing that this Jared did in the past and still be a hero."

We sat in silence for a bit. My guilt had gotten the best of me, and it completely disrupted the conversation. I felt horrible. I knew my feelings were irrational, and I didn't believe that my Moemon truly understood the hardship I was facing.

"Thanks for listening," I said, forcing a smile. "I feel… I feel dumb."

"You shouldn't," said Rose. "You have no reason to feel less about yourself."

"You look like you're about to collapse," noted Olivia worriedly. "You haven't slept, have you?"

I shook my head. The moment she mentioned sleep, I felt the weight of all the day's events fall upon me. I suddenly felt exhausted. "It's been a day and a half since I closed my eyes. I've been running all over the city…"

"Sleep," Christine commanded. "We'll be right here with you."

A hospital cot was fitted for me, and I fell asleep the moment I laid down. When I opened my eyes, I saw those damn eyes surrounded by blackness. Those fifteen eyes staring at me in the darkness, surrounding and suffocating, reminding me of my guilt. My lone protection was a small light keeping me safe and keeping me warm. The eyes danced and twirled, growing and shrinking, unable to break my barrier.

But then the eyes did something they hadn't before: they began to morph, dripping slowly downward, oozing and melting pure white liquid to the ground. The eyes disappeared, and an ocean of white covered everything. I looked down and saw my feet covered in the liquid. I couldn't move. The warmth was still there, but I felt no safety from the light. It hovered above, unable to do anything but watch as the ocean started to rise.

The ocean rose to my knees, to my hips, to my chest, to my neck, and I still could do nothing. I felt air escaping me. I tried to stay afloat, but the ocean continued to rise beyond me. And then as it covered my face, it turned to a pure red, thick as blood. Then I felt something grab my legs and pull me deeper and deeper. I tried to see through the liquid, but I couldn't make out anything but dark shapes underneath.

I struggled free from the grasp and tried to kick my way up. It was dark and cold down below, and I wanted to get to the light, but as hard as I kicked I couldn't reach. I couldn't feel the warmth. I looked around, looked for any sign of help, but only the dark shapes surrounded me.

I struggled to make out the shapes, but as one approached me and was illuminated by the light, I got a full glimpse of the horror. It was a body mangled and scarred, its face scratched and bloody and its eyes dark and empty. I shouted in panic, struggled to get away, but I couldn't move. It bumped into me, and the moment it touched me it moved suddenly and wrapped around me. It stared at me, and I stared at it, unable to look away, and I recognized it.

I felt something else grasp my other arm, and I looked over and saw Blake. I looked back at Derrick and tried to apologize, to beg for forgiveness, to pray that he wouldn't take me with him. But he couldn't hear, and Blake couldn't hear, and the thousands and thousands of nameless men and women surrounding me couldn't hear. They were dead, and they couldn't hear.

They stared at me, and they started to pull me down. I tried to break free, but their grip was too strong. They pulled me lower and lower, and the light above was fading. We sunk deeper, past the bodies who first tried to pull on me. I was completely at their mercy. I was going to die because of them. I felt my vision darken, felt my life fade. This was it. There was nothing I could do.

I awoke shouting in panic. As I gasped for the breath I never thought I'd breathe again, Christine shot over to me and latched onto my chest. I couldn't move any part of my body. All my effort was on my lungs, on forcing air into them, on keeping myself alive. I was so shocked that I was breathing.

"You're okay," Christine whispered. "I'm here for you."

I wanted to respond, but I couldn't say the words. I wanted to hug her, but I couldn't move my arms. We sat there, me completely useless, for what felt like ages. I flexed my hands, tried to get feeling into them. I lifted my arms slightly, just enough to touch Christine's sides.

"Th… th…" I rasped.

"Shhh," she whispered soothingly. "You'll be okay. Just relax."

She understood my panic. She always seemed to understand. I was so thankful that she was here, so thankful that she was the light that always guided me. But even she couldn't save me from whatever dragged me under. I didn't want to think about it. I wanted to feel better.

Eventually, eventually, eventually I was able to hug her back, to whisper my nightmare to her. She nodded and tightened her hug; she told me everything would be fine; she did everything she could to comfort and soothe me.

And eventually I recovered. I hadn't realized, but I had apparently slept for over fifteen hours. We arrived at the Department Store in the midafternoon, and now it was morning. The war had gone on outside and little had changed. Eric was still asleep, the soldiers were still fighting. Stacy still hadn't shown up; Kevin was still gone. My Moemon had stayed with us, watching us. They kept a close eye on me, had joined Christine in comforting me, but I hadn't heard or seen them.

I wanted to stand up, but Christine pushed me back. "I'm fine," I said, trying to sound confident, but I coughed at the end and felt light-headed.

"I'll get some water," said Rose.

As she turned to leave, she froze. An instant later, the entire building shook violently. I grabbed Christine and held her tight. We were completely at the mercy of whatever this force was. It felt like the entire earth was opening up.

But as quickly as the shaking began, it ended. And as quickly as it ended, the noise came. A deafening boom. An explosion. My hands were glued to my ears, but I could still hear it as if it had gone off right next to me.

Then the noise subsided, and through the ringing in my ears I heard whispers of people at the windows staring off to the east.

"The explosion came from the Donavan Tower," said one nurse in a panic.

"Help me up," I whispered. "I want to see."

I hung off Rose and Christine's shoulders, and they practically dragged me to the window. There were a lot of buildings blocking our view, but there was a pillar of smoke coming from the base of Greg's tower. I looked to the stairs, wondering if it was worth climbing them to the top. Some people were already climbing them.

"How tall is the Department Store?" I asked a nearby doctor.

"Thirty stories," she replied, glancing at me. "You don't look like you should be going that high."

I couldn't even respond in time. There was a loud cracking sound, and as I turned toward the tower I saw it begin to shift and tilt.

It was falling.

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy

Eric:

Helen the Drowzee


	11. Chapter 10: Donavan Tower

Maybe it was the ringing in my ears. Maybe my nightmare damaged me. Maybe it was the sheer shock of the entire situation. There was complete and utter silence as we watched the tower fall. After the initial crack signaling the point of no return, there was no sound coming through that window. We were close enough that it should have been deafening, but there was nothing.

The tower managed to stay in the air for a few seconds after tilting as if clinging to life, and then it simply toppled. The small wisp of smoke left by the explosion was engulfed by a giant plume of dust and smoke. The cloud exploded, covering the streets below, stretching out for miles like a wave. We could do nothing but watch as it hurtled toward us. It splatterd the window with debris as it swallowed the Department Store.

Doctors pushed us back and kept us shielded in case our protection broke under the barrage. The glass cracked in several places where some large rocks managed to reach the eighth floor, but thankfully it held. However, our entire view was covered in an opaque muddy brown. It was impossible to see through the smog, so a flurry of people climbed the stairs to get high enough to see.

The rest of us were still in shock. Nobody had spoken since the explosion. I was seriously wondering if I had been completely deafened by the blast, but then finally the whispers began.

"Did that seriously happen?" asked one nurse to another.

"Did the Donavan Tower fall?" Another nurse asked.

"What happened to the tower?"

"Was that an explosion? Did someone plant an explosion?"

"Are they hurt?" A pause. "Are they dead?"

"I'm dreaming," a patient whispered, smiling crazily. "This has to be a dream."

"Someone needs to help them!" Someone shouted in panic. "They may be Saviors, but they're human beings!"

"Arthur," Annie tugged my shirt. "I'm scared."

Rose bent over and picked her up. "It's okay, little Annie," Rose whispered, although even she couldn't mask her shock. "You're safe here."

Christine nudged me. "Wasn't that where Kevin went?" She asked. "They're all in there, aren't they?"

I turned to her, still processing her words. Others overheard and quickly realized the implication.

"Kevin was in that tower?" asked a nearby nurse. "You're sure?"

Christine nodded. "That's where he was heading."

"Oh… oh god…" the nurse recoiled in shock, clutching her stomach. "Kevin… he can't be…"

Word spread quickly around the room. Everyone was whispering the same thing: "Kevin's dead. Our leader is dead."

"Not just their leader," I whispered to myself. "Greg… and Mary Beth… maybe even Karen… they were all in that tower."

The three leaders of the three gangs of Celadon City were all in that tower when it fell. There wasn't a chance they could've survived that. All of them were dead. All of the people in the tower were dead. Everyone in the tower's path were dead. So many people just died in an instant.

But it wasn't just the body count that had people terrified. Everyone had just lost their leaders. Whoever these people were in the past and whoever they became over the years, they were leaders for a reason. They were inspiring; they were respected, and they were loved. The people in the room were bawling, absolutely distraught over the loss of Kevin. Some simply couldn't handle the thought and started to retch, running for buckets.

"What's going to happen now?" asked Annie.

"Hopefully that means the end to this fucking war," I muttered. I couldn't imagine the death that that bomb created. More and more bodies. The unknown mountain of people who'd just lost their lives was too terrible to think about. More bodies in that ocean of blood. More unrecognizable faces.

"The war's over?" Annie asked, daring to smile. "Good! Then we can leave!"

Her exclamation got some glares from nearby grievers. "We should move away from them," I said warily. "Let them grieve."

"But we can leave, right?" Annie asked.

"Maybe," I whispered. "Let's hope so."

If these people had hearts, the war would end right then. The leaders were gone. The Kanto Kings and Mewtwo's Apostles would put aside their differences and help the Celadon Saviors rebuild after being completely wiped out physically and morally. That would be ideal. We could all go home.

But I soon found out that this war brought out the worst in people, and that no side had a heart. The Celadon Saviors would be wiped out, yes, but there would be no help. The winning sides would see an enemy crushed and take advantage. And they would overwhelm them.

* * *

An hour later, the shock had subsided. Waves upon waves of soldiers had passed our floor to get to the top, although few of them had come down. Whatever they were watching above the cloud, it must have been enthralling. The cloud itself had slightly dissipated, but it was still impossible to see even the buildings a few blocks away.

The room was fairly quiet. Most of us were staring out the window, mainly at the ground below, trying to make out anything. We could see shadows of soldiers on the streets running around. There was complete chaos as people ran from group to group trying to understand the full situation. The entire building seemed to have emptied, as the streets were filled.

Those of us staying above were enthralled. We didn't pay much attention to the green blurs passing by. It wasn't until I noticed a disturbing silence that I tore my gaze away from the window. A large group of soldiers had crept behind me and blocked my path. Marcus stood at the helm, his face contorted in rage as he glared at me. I took a step back inactively, wondering why he was so upset with me.

"You," he spat, pointing his finger directly in my face. "You did this!"

I blinked, staring at the accusatory finger. "What?"

"Don't even try to play dumb! You're the reason my father is dead!" Marcus shouted. "You brought Karen here! She forced my father to leave! He wouldn't have been at the tower if it wasn't for you!"

"You don't believe that," said Rose, holding up her arms to separate us. "Arthur had nothing to do with-"

"Fuck you!" Marcus shouted. "He had everything to do with it! Soldiers, arrest him!"

Marcus took a step back, and three soldiers took his place. My Moemon immediately moved in front of me, shielding me with their bodies. I was completely frozen. Why was he accusing me? What leaps in logic lead him to that conclusion? Marcus' entire personality had distorted into this rage-filled beast; he wanted nothing more than to see me suffer for my apparent crimes.

"Can't we talk about this?" I asked desperately. The soldiers had drawn weapons on us and were approaching. My Moemon looked prepared to defend me to the death, and after escaping the hell outside I didn't want them to get hurt in here. "You can't possibly believe it was me, Marcus!"

"Talk?" Marcus repeated in disbelief. "I want you killed! You're lucky I'm giving you mercy and just arresting you."

I didn't want a fight. That was the one thing I didn't want. I placed hands on Rose and Christine's shoulders. "Don't fight, girls," I said. "Please don't attack them."

"Arthur…" Christine said. She didn't take her eyes off Marcus. She wanted nothing more than to attack him in my defense.

But they stood aside, and the soldiers grabbed me and pulled me to my feet. I was brought before Marcus, who looked me in the eyes. Whatever love had been there before had completely vanished. The kind, joking man I knew just yesterday had transformed into something filled with malice. He didn't just despise me; he wanted to see me suffer.

"I don't trust you, and I won't trust anything you say," he said venomously. "You're lucky my father liked you, or I wouldn't be giving you this mercy. I'm going to find proof that you were in on the plot to kill him. Then you'll suffer."

He nodded at his soldiers. "Take him to the roof. Quarantine him. No one else is allowed. Keep guards on him at all times."

Marcus turned his back and walked away, and without another word the soldiers dragged me up twenty two flights of stairs to the roof. They were rough and made sure I felt every stair. The trip was long and painful, and they tossed me onto the ground the moment we came outside.

"Everyone clear out!" One soldier shouted at the crowd of people watching the destruction below. "This boy is under arrest for the murder of Kevin. He's being held here alone."

Very few of them had paid attention to us slamming open the door. The announcement of my crime, however, got their undivided attention, and they were furious.

"He killed Kevin?" Asked one woman. "Why is he being arrested? Throw him off the roof!"

"He is under suspicion," the soldier replied. "He may be an accomplice. We will find out-"

"The hell with finding out," shouted a young man. "If he played a part, he needs to die!"

"Yeah!" shouted another voice. "Throw him off the roof!"

"Avenge Kevin!"

The crowd shouted uproariously. A couple men came forward, their arms reaching for me, but the soldiers pushed them away with their rifles. Before the crowd came too close and things got violent, the soldiers fired in the air. People ducked in fear and backed away.

"No one touches him!" The soldier shouted. "It's a direct order from Marcus himself. If you have a problem, take it up with him. Now clear out!"

I half-believed that the crowd wouldn't be intimidated by just two men, but thankfully they obliged. Many of them shot me evil looks, and a good portion told me, "Fuck you" in various ways. They all went down below, and the soldiers took position at the top of the stairs.

"What about my Moemon?" I asked. They'd followed me up the building to the floor below, but they hadn't come up. I knew they were planning something; I wanted them with me so I could tell them not to do anything.

The soldiers glanced at each other. One nodded, whispering, "He's a kid."

"Keep an eye on him," the other replied. He went down the stairs.

He didn't come up for a while. When he did, he came up with five other soldiers. I was momentarily surprised by the guard, but he quickly explained: "Your Moemon can come up, but you're getting watched at all times. You're not allowed to get closer than ten feet from us or the edge."

"Fine," I agreed. Just as long as I wasn't alone on a roof with guns trained on me every second. I'd be okay with the guns if I had my family with me. A few minutes later, my Moemon joined me, hugged me and made sure I was okay.

"I don't know what's going on," said Annie. "I'm scared, Arthur. That man was scary."

"I don't either," I replied. "This all happened so fast."

"You didn't have anything to do with that, did you?" asked Rose. She was looking me in the eye, so I returned the favor and responded as sincerely as I could.

"No, I didn't. I had no idea there was a bomb at the tower. The whole situation is fucked up."

"But you were there, weren't you? And you came from the Mewtwo's Apostles," Rose whispered this. We were far enough away from the soldiers that they couldn't hear our whispers. "It is suspicious."

I couldn't deny it was. The very fact that I'd met with the Kanto Kings' enemy before arriving at the tower would be enough to throw suspicion on me. But the fact that Marcus suspected me immediately was worrying. I was a scapegoat until Marcus found the real culprit, but that brought several other problems. If he didn't find proof, he would come after me; if he found proof somehow implicating me, he'd certainly come after me. Thankfully, nobody here knew that I met with the Mewtwo's Apostles. I told her this to reassure her, but she shook her head.

"Helen knows," Rose replied. "You told all of us everything. She knows what you did."

"Fuck… but Helen wouldn't…"

"She knows about the fight," said Olivia. "Eric told her we did it. Don't you remember her initial attitude toward you?"

My heart practically stopped. "Find her," I said. She could tell them. She had a reason, and without any of us watching her she had an opportunity. If they found her alone and realized what she knew, I could be in serious trouble. If Marcus made the leap from me meeting with Greg to me planting the bomb, I could imagine what he'd deduce from me meeting with the Mewtwo's Apostles. "Find her and bring her up."

Christine ran up to the soldiers before I had even finished my sentence. The soldiers followed her with their rifles, but she told them to let her through. "I have to go to the bathroom!" She shouted. That was enough to get her through.

"What are you going to do?" Olivia asked.

"I… we just have to keep her up here until they stop suspecting me," I said. "We can't let her out of our sight, just in case."

"She wouldn't tell them anything," said Annie defensively. "She's nice."

"This isn't a time to take risks," I muttered. "Not when I'm being suspected of blowing up a fucking building. No way."

"I could kill them," said Bailey, eyeing the soldiers. "Say the word, and we could escape."

"You aren't killing them!" I whispered sternly. Fighting back would only make things worse. "We'll get out of this. It's just… a temporary obstacle."

"That's an understatement," Olivia muttered.

Christine arrived a few minutes later carrying Helen. Helen looked extremely happy to see me, and she leapt into my arms.

"I didn't know you liked me that much!" she said smiling brightly. "Christine said you really wanted to see me."

I nodded, understanding Christine's lie immediately. "I did. We all did, in fact. We didn't want to camp up here without you. You're practically a member of the team!"

"Oh, that's awesome!" Helen laughed. "You guys are really camping?"

"Helen," Rose said cautiously. "Did you hear what Marcus said?"

"That angry man?" Helen asked. She shook her head. "I was hiding behind Eric's pillow. I didn't see or hear anything."

"Oh," Rose looked relieved. "Don't worry. You didn't miss anything."

"Is that why you're all up here?" She asked. "With all those scary men watching you?"

"They're just here to make sure we're safe," I replied. "Don't worry about them."

"Are you in danger?"

"We're in a war," I replied dismissively. "We're always in danger."

"We're going to be up here for a while," Christine explained. "We wanted you to keep us company while Eric sleeps."

"But what if he wakes up and I'm not there?" She asked nervously. "I don't want him to think he's alone."

I set Helen down and patted her head, then I took Rose aside while the others tried to explain that Eric would be fine.

"We can't keep her up here forever," I sighed.

Rose blinked in surprise. "You changed your mind quickly."

"I feel guilty lying to her. It feels dirty."

"But we can't risk her speaking to others."

I nodded. "Necessary evil," I said, more to myself than to her. I wondered if I was being paranoid. Rose seemed to understand.

"When we have cleared this up, we will return her to Eric," she said. "We will leave the Department Store."

"But where?" I asked. I pointed toward the rubble. "East?" I pointed out toward safety. "Or West?"

"That's your decision."

"Yeah," I sighed. "It usually is."

* * *

Everything had just moved so fast. Two hours ago, Donavan Tower was still standing, and Greg, Mary Beth, and Kevin were still alive. One hour ago, and Marcus was still an amiable, pleasant man whose company I enjoyed. We were safe. All we had to do was wait for Marcus to come to us and help us find Stacy, then we'd be on our way.

But then the bomb went off, and everything went to hell. I was being suspected of playing a part in the explosion, a part in the death of Kevin. Marcus had no proof, but his rage had completely consumed him, and he refused to think about it logically. I was his easy scapegoat, and he focused all of his efforts into determining my guilt.

When he accused me of something I played no part in, when he had me arrested and confined to the roof, I felt trapped, vulnerable, and useless. I was cornered on that roof. All I could do was survey the destruction of the city and wait for Marcus to come back. I couldn't escape with all of those men watching me, and I couldn't fight back without serious repercussions.

For all I knew, Marcus was volatile and inconsolable. Any slight reason for him to believe that I did what he thought I did would be enough to set him off. If Helen told him what I told her, then that would be enough to convince him. I would have been thrown off the roof, and that would be the end of everything.

We didn't do much for a good portion of the day. All we could do was get pieces of information from our guards and watch the city below. Apparently the Kanto Kings had done a full search of the Department Store and other key locations, and no other bombs were found. The bomb's power was the same as the bomb that destroyed the school, likely meaning that the same people blew up both buildings. That meant that either the bomb was stolen from the Celadon Saviors – the primary suspects behind the first bombing – or that the Saviors didn't set either bomb.

The dust cloud had dissipated enough that it was possible to see through it. The entire city looked covered in a layer of dirt and dust. The tower had collapsed southward, taking out numerous buildings down several blocks. It had toppled over like a fallen tree, staying relatively whole after crashing. Hundreds of people were rushing through the debris to recover what they could, but there was so much destruction that it would be impossible to salvage everything. Soldiers reported casualties in the hundreds. The Celadon Saviors, as a result, had retreated. Many of them had surrendered.

"No surrender," A voice crackled over a guard's radio. The guard held the radio to his ear in confusion.

"Was that Marcus?" asked another guard. He got a nod in reply. "What's he talking about?"

"What do you mean, sir?" asked another voice on the radio.

"Those bastards killed my father," Marcus replied. "They didn't learn from the last war, but we will. We won peacefully last time, but the only way to secure our victory is to crush them. There will not be a third civil war. Don't take prisoners. Shoot them all."

Silence. "Sir?"

"That's an order," Marcus commanded. "To all of you. We will fulfill my father's wishes, and we'll ensure equality for all. Anyone who disagrees cannot be allowed to live and push their ideas."

The guards stared at each other in shock. The radio was dropped to the ground where it exploded into pieces.

"If he's slaughtering soldiers who've surrendered…" the guard whispered, shaking his head.

"He's gone insane," another guard agreed. He pulled out his own radio. "Sir, we can't execute prisoners."

There was silence on the other end. The guard spoke into the radio again: "Sir, what you're doing is wrong."

Then a voice came through: "Whoever is with that soldier, arrest him for going against a direct order."

There was a moment of hesitation, and then one of the guards struck the radio guard with the butt of his rifle. The radio guard dropped to the ground, and all of the guards drew their weapons. Two of them pointed at the man who'd butted him, and the other four were trained on the two dissenters.

"Put your weapons down," one of the majority said. "Marcus commanded."

"Fuck Marcus," one of the minority spat. "You're accepting us shooting soldiers who'd surrendered."

"Marcus is right," the guard replied. "If we let them live, we'll only be going through this hell in the future. The best way to stop them is to kill them."

"This isn't our way," the minority replied. "This has never been our way! We stand for everyone! We can't just kill people who disagree!"

"We aren't killing them for disagreeing," argued the majority. "We're killing them because they shot at us! No one innocent is dying."

"The moment they throw their guns to the ground, they're innocent! That's what surrendering is!"

"This isn't a philosophy debate. This is about following orders."

"I don-" But the guard couldn't finish the word before he was riddled with bullets. Both of the guards were shot down where they stood. Their corpses fell to the ground and painted the roof with blood.

The guard who'd shot them both threw his weapon to the ground in disgust. "Shouldn't have pointed guns at us," he muttered, more to convince himself than anyone else that he'd done the right thing. "I'll bring him in." He picked up the unconscious guard and dragged him down the stairs.

"What the fuck just happened?" A voice from below shouted. "Did you finally kill that kid?"

We couldn't hear the response. I stared at the dead guards in disgust and horror. I'd only just been able to tune out the sights and sounds of war, yet here they were just a few feet from me. Annie dug close to my chest, averting her eyes from the sight. She was stifling tears, whispering that she was scared and wanted to get away.

"We need more men," One of the remaining guards muttered.

"We'll wait until he's returned," another replied. "We can barely guard them with three of us."

"Fucking idiots," the third spat. "I hate what Marcus commanded as well, but I'm not stupid enough to turn on my comrades!"

"What the fuck is Marcus thinking?" The second agreed.

The voice, one of the civilians who'd been kicked off the roof earlier, shouted up at us: "Hey, your friend won't answer me! What the fuck just happened?"

"A disagreement," A guard shouted down. "Don't come up!"

"Did you kill the kid?"

"He's still alive!"

"Kill the fucking kid!"

The guard slammed the door shut in disgust.

"Thanks," I muttered. I appreciated the gesture, even if it wasn't directed at me.

But the guard didn't even get a chance to respond. Bailey charged forward immediately and grabbed both of them by their heads. They could only let out gasps of surprise before their flesh lost all its color and their eyes rolled back in their heads. She let go, and the two dropped to the ground.

"What the fuck!" I shouted in disgust. "I told you not to do that!"

"What did you do?" Olivia shouted in surprise.

"Are they dead?" Rose asked.

"They're dead," Bailey said simply. She turned to Olivia. "I killed them."

"Why?" I shouted.

Bailey pointed behind us. "She's here."

We all turned around to see a figure drop onto the roof. She landed deftly on her feet and gave us all a nod of acknowledgment, her face expressionless.

"You're all okay," said Stacy, calmly as if she hadn't just dropped out of nowhere, as if we hadn't been searching for her for days. "Good. I'd like you all to come with me. I found my family."

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy

Eric:

Helen the Drowzee


	12. Chapter 11: Stacy

We stared at her in confusion. Her family…? I should've been happier that she found us, that we were all together. But the shock of the guards turning on each other and then Bailey's sudden murders prevented my brain from acknowledging happiness. I was completely stunned.

"You found them?" Christine asked unsurely. "You really… found them?"

She nodded, giving nothing away behind those mysterious eyes. "I want you all to see," she insisted.

"We can't," I said. I pointed at the four dead guards blocking the doorway. "We have to leave. They'll think we killed them!"

"I did," said Bailey matter-of-factly.

I ignored her. "If we stay in the city, we'll be hunted. We'll be killed."

"We can't stay here," added Olivia. "I want to see Stacy's family."

"We need to leave the city," I insisted. "Until this war is over."

"If we wait too long, we may never see them again," said Stacy.

I wasn't convinced. "If you found them once, you'll be able to find them again."

"Do you not care about my family?" She asked. "Would you be so dismissive if it was Christine's family we were searching for?"

I blinked. The sudden venom in her voice stung me. "Stacy, it isn't like that."

"Where did that come from?" Christine asked, hurt as well.

"We've been through a lot lately," I explained.

"I'm sorry if I don't sympathize," she replied dismissively.

I ignored that remark and continued. "People think that I had a part in that tower falling! They think I killed the leader of the Kanto Kings!"

"Did you?"

"No! Of course not!"

"Then you have nothing to fear."

I almost scoffed. It wasn't like Stacy to be so naïve. "Of course I do. This isn't a matter of truth. They don't care if I'm innocent. Everyone wants my head just because I'm a suspect! Now the four guards who were watching me are dead. We can't stay here!"

"Then-"

"We can't stay in the city," I corrected myself quickly. "Marcus has way too many men who can search for me. If I stay here, I will be hunted down. I guarantee I will not live."

"Arthur, I had a single goal when I joined your team. That was to reach Celadon City and find my family."

"I know, I know, and I'm glad you found them! Really, I am, Stacy, but we're running out of time, and we need to leave." I walked up to her. "Please understand."

"I understand," she said simply. I knew that she did, but that didn't make me feel any better about denying her. "You leave me with little choice. I will not leave this city."

"What? Stacy… you know how long we were searching for you?" I asked. "I traveled across this entire battlefield for you!"

"I will not leave this city," she repeated. "I'll help you all to the ground so that you don't have to face these people."

I almost dared to smile. Almost dared to dream that it would be that simple.

"But I'll leave you with only two options. You can follow me to where my family is, or you can leave this city and you will never see me again."

My heart dropped. "Stacy…" I whispered. "Why…"

"My family is the sole reason I traveled with you," Stacy replied.

"We're your family too…"

"Which is why I want you all to follow me. It… brings me no joy to give you this ultimatum. I want to know if you believe your safety is more important than your family."

I stared at this girl. This girl who had unbelievable strength and persistence and courage and grace, a girl who I respected so much, a girl I risked my entire life to see again. This girl whose emotions never guided her. Yet they were guiding her now. She wanted nothing more than to show me her family. She wanted her new family to meet her old family, to bring them together.

If we denied her, that would be the end of everything between us. All of the battles we faced, all the time we spent together, all the challenges we overcame would be nothing but history. She would disappear from our lives forever.

But if we stayed in the city, our lives would be in terrible danger. The hundreds of soldiers of the Kanto Kings would be hunting for us, and there was little doubt that they would shoot on sight. Five of their soldiers were dead, and since nobody saw them kill each other everyone would blame us. We survived earlier because we weren't a threat and nobody targeted us, but now we would have half of Celadon City searching for us.

But this was Stacy, my first catch. She supported me through all of my decisions. I couldn't abandon her now. Not when she was at her most emotionally vulnerable. I would never be able to live with myself.

I gave her a slow nod. "I'll support you, Stacy."

Stacy let out a sigh of relief and pulled me into a hug. "Thank you," she whispered. "Thank you so much, Arthur."

I let her have her hug, but I held her at arm's reach. "But you have to protect us. We will have the Kanto Kings looking for us. I don't want anyone to get hurt."

"Of course," she promised. "Nobody will get hurt."

That was all I needed. I gave her a sad smile. "It really is good to see you again, Stacy. We all missed you."

"I missed you all," she replied. She looked at the dead bodies. "We'd better leave quickly."

I turned around. "You're all going in your balls for now. It'd be faster if Stacy only carried me."

Christine frowned. "I wanted to fly."

"You'll fly soon," I reminded her. The prospect of evolution cheered her up. "Then we'll come back here and take a flight on our own."

I recalled the five of them, and Stacy jumped onto my shoulders. She sat down, wrapping her legs around my shoulders. I felt the hairs on my neck stand on end as we approached the edge. I trusted her, but even so I couldn't help but wonder if this girl who was shorter and lighter than me would be able to lift me.

"Don't drop me," I muttered nervously.

She didn't reply. She leapt off the side, her arms held out. She managed to catch the wind and leveled out while I dangled beneath her. She kept a tight grip on me, although my arms were wrapped around her knees. I felt the cold wind blow against my face, a wind I barely registered on the roof. Now that there was nothing beneath us, I was suddenly extremely aware of everything around us. Every slight shift jolted me.

I looked below, seeing the remnants of the cloud still covering the streets. A sea of brown beneath us illuminated by the morning sun. As we glided in silence, waves of shadow moved beneath us; platoons of men moving toward victory. The war was still beneath us, its sights and sounds shrouded by the cloud.

We glided north toward the apartment building that caught Stacy's eye before; another building that towered over the others. We had started high enough that Stacy only had to slowly descend in a straight path over a few shorter buildings to reach the apartment building's roof. She flapped her arms a bit to keep us level. Her determined gaze was fixed solely on that roof; she never looked down.

Once we landed safely, I let out all of my Moemon. They looked around in confusion for a moment as the roof of the apartment building was nearly identical to the roof of the Department Store. It didn't take them long to realize the differences: slightly different scenery, the Department Store far in the distance, and no dead soldiers guarding the stairs down.

"Where are we now?" Rose asked.

"We are on top of the Celadon Apartment Complex," Stacy answered. "This is where my family is."

"We'd better get going," I said, looking over the edge. I couldn't make out any shadows below, but I knew we didn't have too much time to stand around before the bodies were discovered. They might already be sending search parties. "Lead the way, Stacy."

Stacy nodded and led us down the stairs. The entire floor had been completely deserted. Doors had been thrown open and suitcases left abandoned. Clothes, toys, books, and newspapers had been strewn everywhere. The apartment building had been abandoned in a hurry.

"Were you here the entire time searching for your family?" Olivia asked.

"It took me many hours to reach this place," Stacy replied, moving quickly down the hall, not even casting a glance at the opened doors. "In the initial chaos, I had to hide in order to be safe. It has also been… a while since I was last here. I did not remember what apartment we used to own."

"Oh, you used to live here?" I asked. "How long?"

She slowed down, hesitating. "Five years."

"That's longer than I expected," I noted. "Sounds like most of your life."

"It was," she said curtly. We had reached the end of the hallway and went down the stairs, taking them two at a time. We traveled five flights before Stacy stopped in front of the door. She placed her hand on the door, took a deep breath, and turned around to face us.

"I want to tell you this before we enter," she explained. "I was born six years ago. My mother was a Starpator, and my father was a human lawyer. A well respected lawyer who supported Moemon rights and wanted to protect Challengers as well. He helped numerous laws pass and was influential in Celadon Law. But his ideas gave him enemies. During the Celadon War, he was attacked in his office by the Celadon Saviors. Everyone working in the office was killed.

"I had only just been born, and my mother had already evacuated. We didn't hear the news until the war had ended. My mother was strong, but she was a Moemon. She couldn't get an education nor any knowledge of this world's laws. We lost our house and were forced into the apartment, and my mother had to work any menial job she could to pay the bills.

"She was very protective of me, so she taught me to be self-sufficient when I was very young. I was isolated from most children. While my mother worked, I stayed with my father's younger brother and his family. He had two children around my age, but they disliked me and I was indifferent to them. I stayed with my uncle whenever I could. He spoke of my father and his accomplishments and explained his own similar work.

"I learned many things that my mother had kept hidden from me about my father's death. Just before the war began, my father had defended a bill which banned all Bounty Hunter organizations. That was the final straw, as the Celadon Saviors were supporters of the various organizations, and he was targeted. When my father died, my uncle took over his work. With his support, the law was passed, and every public organization was disbanded.

"My uncle was a proud, family-oriented man, and I respected him greatly for the help he gave to my mother. He supported us in numerous ways. He visited us often, bought us groceries, medicine for when I was sick, and books about the world. But he changed a lot over the years."

She stared at us for a few moments. Her gaze dropped to the ground.

"Nearly a year ago, my mother and I were watching the news. My uncle's latest law had been officially announced: the Challenger Identity Protection Act. We were watching President Monroe announce that he would support it after the tragedy of that year's Challengers. As soon as the announcement was over, we heard people shouting from below. A group of people were running up the stairs. My mother suddenly tensed up.

"She told me to go to the window and open it, and she barricaded the door. I did what she asked, and when I turned around my mother was holding the door closed with her body. She shouted at me to fly, to escape for my life. I didn't hesitate. I jumped out of the window and soared out of the city. I never saw… my mother again. I didn't know what happened to her.

"I flew and flew just to escape from whatever scared my mother so much. I flew for hours in silence, letting myself slowly drift to the ground. I landed in Route 2, tired and hungry and alone. I lived in isolation for months until I saw your group of Challengers leaving Pallet Town. I remembered watching the Challengers' progress on television, and I was excited whenever they reached Celadon City. That is why I approached you. And that is why I wanted to return to Celadon."

"To find out what happened to her," I whispered understandingly. Stacy looked up at me, her face as expressionless as always despite telling me all of this. She kept the façade, but I knew inside it hurt her to recall. "We're with you."

"Thank you," she turned around and opened the door. The hallway was similar to the one above: abandoned and destroyed. There was one major difference, however, and that was apparent as we neared the center of the hallway.

"I had forgotten which apartment we lived in," she explained as we stared at the door. "I spent many hours combing through each room. It was only when I came to this floor that it became obvious."

The door we were staring at, the door to Stacy's old home, was covered completely in black and yellow police tape. It was coated in dust, as if it hadn't been touched in a long time. There were scratch marks on the door frame, and the top hinge had been completely broken off.

Stacy took a deep breath and then kicked the door open. It crashed into the wall, hung a little, and then fell to the ground as the bottom hinge broke off as well. The door sent up a cloud of dust that escaped into the hallway.

We waited for Stacy to enter, but she stared at the door silently. Finally, she said: "I hadn't entered when I found it. I wanted to enter it with you all. I… I'm hesitating…"

I felt it appropriate to place a hand on her shoulder. "Don't hesitate. You deserve to know."

I didn't think what I said mattered, just that I said something and that I showed I was there for her. She nodded at the room and then stepped inside. I was immediately after her.

The apartment was small: A single living room that branched off into a side kitchen and a separate bedroom. It was also completely destroyed. Police tape had been placed around pieces of broken furniture – the overturned couch, the shattered vase, the smashed television set – but they couldn't place tape around every small thing that had been scattered around. Picture frames and books covered the floor, and the ledges they had once been placed were on the ground nearby.

Stacy turned slowly in a circle to survey everything. Her gaze settled on the television, and she stared at it longingly.

"She isn't here," Stacy noted, her voice betraying hope. "She may have escaped…" She moved to the other room, but as soon as she passed the doorframe she stooped. "No… she didn't."

The bedroom was even smaller. The king-sized bed took up the majority of it, with only enough room for a single dresser and a walk-in closet scrunched into the corner. It, too, was covered in dust.

Of course, Stacy was staring at the bed itself. Black tape had been placed onto it in the shape of a young adult. Its arms and legs were stretched outward toward the bedposts. Dried blood had pooled underneath the adult's head, abdomen, and chest.

Stacy walked up to the bed and placed her hand on the outline's head. She rubbed the figure longingly, moving it slowly down until she had covered every inch. She remained absolutely silent. Her expression never wavered. She simply stood and tried to feel as much of her mother as she could.

"She was strong," she whispered. "She never showed me any emotion but love. She never lost her façade of happiness despite all of the trials she had to go through. She cared for me, protected me, taught me. She did everything she could to make sure I was safe and happy."

She shook her head slowly. "This is what happened to you. Tied up… murdered…"

"She didn't deserve this," I muttered. "She deserved better."

Stacy made no motion of having heard me. She stared at the blood.

"They didn't clean the room," she whispered. "They left the entire apartment in shambles. They abandoned it completely."

She turned to me. "Why did they do this? Do you know? Can you guess?"

"I don't know this world's legal system," I said defensively. "I don't know if they're corrupt or noble, if they just wrote this off as a gang-related murder or if they couldn't get evidence to convict anyone."

"I'm not blaming you," she said. "I… I'm still trying to comprehend this."

"I know," I replied. "If you want to vent, I'll listen. God knows you've done enough for me. This is… this is a lot to take in at once. You don't have to bear it alone."

"Talking won't solve anything," she said. She tried to move past me, but I caught her arm and she looked up at me indignantly. "We don't have much time to stay."

"Stacy," I said sternly. "You never tell me how you're feeling. How are you feeling?"

"I feel like everything I worked for was for nothing," she muttered. "Like I spent months wondering and worrying only to have my worst fears realized. My entire family is dead, and I have nothing to remember them by but my memories and this abandoned apartment."

"You know none of that is true," I said. "You-"

"You asked how I was feeling," she wrenched her arm free. "I feel lost and confused, and I need time."

She stormed out of the room, and I stared at her as she walked out. She was holding back all of her emotions like she always did. She didn't want to show the slightest bit of weakness, not even at her most vulnerable moment. Not even to us. To the people who wanted nothing more than to see her get through this.

I looked back at the bed. She had brought up a good question. This had happened months ago. Why did the police just tape off the evidence then completely block the apartment? I was curious enough to search for an answer, but we didn't have the time. The police might have had the answers we needed, but they were fighting a war, and they wouldn't be willing to give us them.

There was a picture frame on the bedside table. It had been turned over, and as a result the picture itself was one of the few spotless things in the apartment. It showed two pairs of young adults smiling and holding infants. The two men had their arms around each other's shoulders and were smiling brightly. The women were off to the side. One was wearing a modest red dress and had her brown hair pulled up in a ponytail. The other was wearing a gorgeous black and white dress that complimented her waist-length black hair.

"She looks so much like Stacy," I whispered to myself. I saw the family resemblance; the black-haired woman looked exactly like an older, carefree Stacy.

The men were her father and her uncle. They looked extremely similar, and the uncle in particular looked incredibly familiar. I stared at the uncle, trying to pinpoint where I saw that face before. It was recent, or I would've forgotten.

"Fuck…" I muttered. "I… I really should know this."

I took the picture frame into the other room. The girls were all going through the room and cleaning it as best as they could. It crossed my mind to tell them not to tamper with evidence, but then I realized no investigation would bother with something so old. I walked over to Stacy and held out the picture for her.

"It's a beautiful family," I said, smiling.

She stared at it, and the ghost of a smile crossed her lips. "They must have been so happy."

"What were their names?" I asked.

"My mother was named Patricia," she replied. "My father Nigel. My Aunt was Dalila… and my uncle was Ronald."

I blinked, looking at her strangely. Suddenly so many pieces were falling into place. "Ronald… Quill."

She looked up at me, her face rivaling mine in curiosity. "You knew his name. Did you meet him?"

I opened my mouth to speak, but Stacy interrupted, too eager to wait. "My uncle is alive? He's still here? Arthur…"

I nodded, and the rarest thing happened: Stacy's face broke into a grin. She grabbed me and hugged me tight. "Arthur… my uncle's alive… my family's alive… I didn't… I couldn't… Where did you meet him? How is he doing? Are my aunt and cousins well?"

"Your aunt and cousins evacuated," I explained. "Your uncle's living in a house in the Mewtwo Apostle's territory. He stayed so that he didn't have to abandon his work. His legacy, which was your father's as well, was all he seemed to care about."

"He's well, then?" She stared at my eyes with such intensity that I couldn't lie. She must have known I was hiding the fact that we were attacked.

"He was when I last saw him," I said with as much honesty as I could. "His house was in Celadon Saviors' territory when I left – the front lines shifted a lot – but with the fall of the tower, and the Celadon Saviors being weakened, he may be protected again."

"I need to know if he's okay," she said to herself. "I need to see him. I need him to know that I'm okay."

"Stacy…" I sighed. "We can't."

"Arthur, you've done everything I asked, and I'll always remember you," she said, removing the photograph from its frame and putting it away. "You all helped me brave this. But if you're going to leave the city, then we are going to part ways."

"No!" I shouted. "We're doing all of this so that we can stay together! We aren't separating!"

"But you're all in danger," said Stacy. "You can't stay, and I have things I need to do."

"Can you not do it after the war is over?" I pleaded. Her eyes were filled with such determination that I knew the answer. I just wanted her to forget everything and come with us. I wish I hadn't shown her the photo.

"I can't wait. Too many things may happen in that time," said Stacy. "You may find me after the war, if you wish. I will be fine; I can protect myself."

The others started to plead with her to stay. Annie clung to her leg and cried, Olivia and Christine stood in her path and refused to move, and Rose clutched her arm and spoke reassurances into her ear. I wanted to join them, but my watch erupted in noise, making me jump in surprise.

I looked down at it and saw Eric's name flashing on the screen. I stared at it in surprise. It meant Eric was awake. I clicked the screen and held it close to my face.

"Hello?" I said cautiously. "Eric, is that you?"

"Hello, Arthur," came a voice who was unmistakably not Eric's. "I have some news for you."

"Who is this?" I asked. "What have you done with Eric?"

"You don't recognize me?" The voice feigned hurt. "I'm Marcus, you murderer! And if you don't surrender yourself to me, this friend of yours is going to die!"

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy

Eric:

Helen the Drowzee


	13. Chapter 12: Celadon Police Station

"Marcus," I said, trying to keep my voice as calm as possible despite the rage and fear filling me up. "Eric has been unconscious for the past few days. He is completely innocent of anything you're accusing me of."

"You're right," Marcus conceded. "Eric is innocent." A pause, and then his voice betrayed the rage inside. "But then again, so was my father."

"Your father-"

"Was a good man who was killed because people didn't understand the goodness in him!" He shouted. "I heard the rumors about him! Pathetic, spiteful lies from sore losers who wanted to bring him down to their level!"

"I don't care about rumors!" I said. "I wasn't around for that!"

"You conspired with those who made them!" Marcus shouted. "You met with the Saviors and the Apostles in your short time here!"

I paused. He didn't know that I met with the Mewtwo's Apostles. It didn't take me long to realize that we'd left Helen on that roof. She disappeared when the guards turned on each other, and Stacy's appearance distracted me from her. She told him.

"In case you hadn't realized, I'm not with either of them," I muttered. "I didn't 'conspire'."

"Why would I believe your lies? How am I supposed to know what happened behind those closed doors? You have no proof."

"You wouldn't believe me no matter what I said! You're not even listening to me right now! Why did you call me?"

"I have Eric," Marcus stated. "Someone you clearly care about. Someone you wouldn't dare leave."

"He's innocent," I repeated. "Threatening him is horrible!"

"Killing an innocent man is even worse."

It was infuriating talking to him. I'd throw the watch out the window if it wasn't stuck to my wrist. I tried desperately to keep my voice level. "You don't want to stoop to that level."

"You're right about that," said Marcus. I couldn't tell if his regret was genuine. "But I have to make my point clear. You're guilty. Not only for killing my father, but for the deaths of the brave men I had guarding you and for the hundreds of lives lost to the Donavan Tower's destruction. You have to turn yourself in."

I looked at the wall grimly. I knew I'd get blamed for that; there was no reason for him to believe otherwise. I couldn't escape that judgement, but I refused to return to the Kanto Kings after the false accusations. If I did what he said, he'd have me killed. He'd probably pull the trigger himself.

But the alternative was running away and condemning Eric to Marcus's mercy. He definitely didn't deserve to be punished in my place; he'd suffered enough. Also, if I ran, I'd a fugitive from the Kanto Kings for the rest of my time in this world. If the Kanto Kings won the war – which given the Saviors' situation and the smaller number of the Apostles was looking extremely likely – and their influence spread across the region as they predicted, I'd be a fugitive from the entire region.

I had no other option. I had to stay in the city, and I had to help the Mewtwo's Apostles won. If the Kanto Kings won, Eric or I would die.

I lifted my wrist slowly to my mouth and feigned defeat. "What will happen when I turn myself in?" I asked.

"I'll let Eric leave freely," Marcus answered. "You'll be held prisoner until the end of the war, and then you'll be tried as a murderer and a war criminal. When your guilt is proven, you'll be imprisoned for the rest of your life."

As I expected. "You won't prove me guilty," I said defiantly.

Marcus laughed mockingly. "There will be plenty of evidence, but you have a right to defend yourself. You deserve that much, murderer." He paused. "Just stay where you are. I have men searching through that apartment building you're in."

I grimaced. I forgot about the GPS again. There was no way to turn it off, so Marcus was going to know that I wouldn't turn myself in. "See you soon." I hung up.

My Moemon stared at me in shock. Stacy had stopped attempting to leave, instead watching me curiously.

"You aren't turning yourself in," she deduced.

"We're running," I declared. "They're coming for us. We need to leave quickly."

"Where are we going?" asked Annie as Rose picked her up. "Are we leaving the city?"

"We can't leave," I said, heading to the door. "Marcus has Eric hostage. He threatened to kill him if I didn't surrender. We need to find some way to rescue him."

"I'll do it," said Stacy.

"You're not leaving us," I commanded. I pointed down. "Marcus said that his soldiers are below. We need to fly off this roof."

"Wait, they're in here now?" asked Christine, baring her claws. "We can fight them!"

"We're running," I said sternly. It might've been my imagination, but I could hear faint footsteps below. "If we stay and fight, they'll corner us. We need to get out of this building."

Rose turned to Stacy. "Are you ready to leave? Do you need any more time?"

Stacy shook her head. "I've prepared myself for this moment for long enough. It's passed. I'll get you all to safety, and then we'll discuss a strategy later."

"What about your uncle?" asked Olivia.

"Later."

With that, we ran back up to the roof. In the stairwell, I certainly could hear the faint echoes of ascending footsteps. Marcus was too confident giving us that warning. He should've known I'd be able to escape; I escaped from one rooftop already.

I recalled all of my Moemon but Stacy and let her latch onto my shoulders. She looked down at me as I surveyed the city, debating the possibilities. West and North were impossible; one led me into the enemy and the other led me out of the city. East led me to the Mewtwo's Apostles. They could help, but there was no way of knowing how they were faring against the Kanto Kings. South led to the police, and their neutrality made them the most likely to avoid Marcus' wrath.

I pointed South. "To the police station."

Stacy nodded. "Running start, Arthur."

I took a step back, prepared myself, and sprinted. I leapt off the roof, feeling the deep pit in my stomach as gravity took hold. It only lasted for a moment as Stacy quickly gained control and stabilized, gliding slowly downward. The city below us hadn't changed much. There was noticeably more activity around the apartment building, but farther east and south there wasn't much movement. It was quiet. We were alone in the sky.

"Stacy," I muttered, unsure if I wanted to distract her from keeping us airborne. "I'm… I'm glad we were able to share that moment." She remained silent. "I'm glad you've stayed with us this long. I understand that your real family is important, and I support you finding him."

I glanced up. She focused solely on the skies in front of her. She didn't acknowledge it, but she heard me.

"When we land, find him. Make sure he's safe, and do what you can. With the police's help, we should be able to rescue Eric. Then, when this war is over, and we're all safe, we can decide then if we… if we'll travel together."

To my surprise, Stacy let out a chuckle. "It will not be that simple."

I smirked bitterly. "Of course not, but I don't want to think about any other alternatives."

"I still wish to rescue Eric."

"I forbid it. It's far too dangerous."

"They will not recognize me," Stacy argued. "I can pose as a civilian and take Eric away before they are aware."

"Stacy," I said sternly. "We can't do anything reckless. We can't decide anything until we've given the police our information."

"The police," Stacy muttered, her voice betraying spite. "I want to know what happened to my mother. Why did the police not… clean the apartment or give her possessions to my uncle or…"

"We don't know everything," I said quietly. "We can't make judgments until we find out. That's… another reason why I want to go to them."

"I hope we learn what we need."

"I hope you do too."

We floated to the ground in silence just a few blocks from the police station. Few people were this far south, and Stacy maneuvered us so that we touched down in a secluded alleyway. If people were paying attention and looking to the sky, they saw us; I hoped they weren't. We didn't need people investigating.

I threw my Moemon out as we landed and let them survey our surroundings. Stacy leapt into the air and landed on top of the small building we were beside. She landed back on the ground a few seconds later.

"The nearest person is three blocks North," she announced. "We're safe."

I looked around, unfamiliar with the area. I turned to Stacy, "Did you see the police station?"

She nodded, pointing east. She and Bailey took the lead, making sure there was nobody in sight, as the rest of us followed them through the city. It didn't take us long to reach our destination, and we arrived without incident.

The police station was a large imposing metal building illuminated by glowing red and blue lights. The entire building was surrounded by cars and trucks, many of which were silently flashing warning lights. Several dozen policemen stood vigilantly around the building, many of them concealed by the mechanical barricade.

Several bodies scattered around the street riddled with holes. I stared at the nearest uneasily. Even the police had to kill. The body looked unarmed; the police looted it as well. I turned back to my Moemon.

"Do I look scared?" I asked, trying my best to smile.

"Terrified," Bailey replied.

"Do you not want to do this?" asked Rose carefully.

"I don't want to get shot trying to surrender." I thought for a moment. "Stay back. I'll go alone; I won't scare them as much as seven of us will." I turned to Christine. "If I die, get everyone out of the city until the war is over."

Christine clutched my arm. "Don't say that," she demanded. "You're going to be fine!"

I patted her hair. "That's an order from your trainer. Only if I die."

I carefully pulled out of her grip, took a deep breath, and stepped into the street with my arms up in surrender. Immediately, a spotlight was activated and trained on me, blinding me. I took a step back instinctively, trying to regain my sight.

"Stay where you are!" A voice blared from a megaphone. "Get onto your knees!"

I did as it commanded without hesitation. Shadows formed in the light, several men running toward me with their weapons ready. They could no doubt see I wasn't a threat, but they took no chances. They wrenched me to my feet, checked my pockets for weapons, and guarded me from the outside.

"There are Moeballs in your pocket," The officer checking me stated. "Are your Moemon in them?"

I shook my head. "No, they're in that alley," I said, pointing. Immediately the police trained their weapons on the alley. "Don't hurt them! We just want to be safe from the war!"

"Recall them," The officer demanded, holding me in front of him. "Slowly."

I slowly took out a Moeball and held it out. "It's okay girls!" I said. "I'm not dead!"

A few moments later, Christine crept out of the shadows, her hands in the air. The police watched her closely as she approached me.

"Recall her," The officer repeated.

I smiled at Christine apologetically before sending her back to her ball and placing it in my pocket.

The process repeated for all of my Moemon. One by one, they crept out of the alley as peacefully as possible. Even Bailey. Even Stacy. Once all six were safely in their balls, I was handcuffed and marched through a small gap in the barricade, up the stone steps, and into the police station.

The doors led to a small hallway before opening into the larger workspace. Desks had been piled up around the hallway to form another barricade. Several heads darted defensively toward us as we entered, and their gazes lingered as they watched the half dozen officers parade us through the building. We moved around a small gap in the barricade and saw the chaos inside the station.

With most of the desks forming the blockade, the majority of the floor was made up of numerous sleeping bags, most of which were unoccupied. The clearly stressed and exhausted officers stood in groups talking in hushed voices or circled around a giant map of Celadon City that had been tacked onto one of the walls or stood around the few operational computers. The place was eerily quiet for how many policemen were stuffed inside this main room.

We stepped around the sleeping quarters and down a small hallway, passing numerous doors leading to the jail cells, to the evidence rooms, to the interrogation rooms, and to the locker rooms. At the end of the hallway was a simple wooden door with a golden plaque reading 'Chief of Police – Brent Harmen'.

The chief of police himself was in a deep conversation with a high-ranking officer. Chief Harmen looked like he'd aged several decades; his face sweaty and red and his lips gripping a half-used cigar as he glared at another map hanging on the wall. His brow was furled in concentration and his arms folded in frustration. He nodded as the officer whispered his final word, muttered a few of his own, and waved the officer away. Then he noticed the door open, and his eyes fell on me.

They raised in amusement. "You're still here?" He snorted. "Of course you are. You're a Challenger; you have to meddle."

"Sir?" One officer leading me around asked curiously. "You know him?"

"Course I do, son," Chief Harmen answered, waving me toward him. "He's harmless. Give me the keys, and well done for rescuing him."

The officers nodded, saluted, and left the room. Chief Harmen closed the door behind them while the other remaining officer unlocked my handcuffs.

"Arthur, right?" Chief Harmen asked. I nodded as I rubbed my sore wrists. He nodded to the other officer. "This is Assistant Chief Miles, my second."

Assistant Chief Miles was another battle-hardened man; his short hair shined silver and his face wrinkled as he tried to smile. He looked as if he could bench me and my team; his uniform tightened across his broad, muscular body. There was no warmth in his eyes; he didn't extend the same trust and hospitality that his superior had.

I tried to avoid Miles' eyes as I gave him a curt nod of thanks. "So-"

"What are you doing in this damn city, son?" Chief Harmen spat. "I hope you realized it's a godforsaken war ground! I hope you noticed the cloud of dust that smothered the city after Donavan Tower fell!"

"Of course I did!" I said defensively. "I wasn't trying to meddle. I was looking for my Moemon!"

"Oh, of course," Chief Harmen shook his head in disappointment. "Trust me, son, the men who were supposed to be looking after your Moemon are doing most of the cleaning once this war is over. I couldn't believe they let them slip past. I know they were able to keep your other Challenger – Quinton, I believe – safe."

"My Moemon are crafty," I admitted. "They don't like being separated from me."

"I don't need craftiness. I need compliance. They didn't stay with my officers, so I don't know where they could be. I wish I could help, but I cannot send my men out looking for them."

Good thing I didn't go to the police first like I wanted; I never would have found them. "Don't worry, sir, I found them."

Chief Harmen snorted in amusement. "Is that right?"

I pulled out a ball. "Permission to send them out?"

Chief Harmen glanced at the Assistant Chief, and then nodded. "I believe you, son, but it'd make me feel better if you were all together."

So I sent out my Moemon. The room was already fairly small, so the six extra bodies cramped it significantly. The two officers pushed against the wall to give my team some room. I noticed Chief Harmen's eyes linger longer on Stacy than the rest of my Moemon; the slightest light of recognition shined in them.

"Wonderful," He said. "Like I said, I feel better that you're with your team, and you aren't hurt. Put your team back in their balls until you're out of the city."

"No!" Christine complained. "I hate being in there!"

"The less civilians out in danger, the better," said Assistant Chief Miles without the slightest bit of sympathy. "It's better for you. A bit of unpleasantness to ensure your survival."

"It's not that simple," I argued, looking to Olivia. "How long has it been since you had your bandage replaced?"

Rose answered, "Is it near dawn?"

"Five in the morning," Chief Harmen glanced at his watch.

"It won't be necessary for another several hours," Rose replied.

"Thanks for checking, though," said Olivia, smiling.

I grimaced. I wanted to use the bandage changing as an excuse to keep my Moemon out. Chief Harmen reacted exactly as I expected.

"Seems like it is that simple," He said. "We have a small medical room if you need it, but you will keep your Moemon safe from harm otherwise. I know how you Challengers get. I know you'll sneak, but keep it out of our sight."

I nodded disappointedly. "Sorry, guys. I'll see you soon, after I've talked with them."

I hugged each of my Moemon as I recalled them. When it was Stacy's turn, however, she stared at Chief Harmen as intensely as she could. Chief Harmen had no choice but to stare back.

"You know who I am," Stacy declared.

"You look familiar," Chief Harmen replied dismissively.

"You knew my mother."

"Staraptor, right?"

Stacy nodded.

I placed a gently hand on Stacy's shoulder. I'd never felt it so tense. "Be calm, please," I whispered.

Regret filled Chief Harmen's eyes. "I've only known one of them in this city. Patricia was a fine woman. What happened to her was a tragedy."

"Who did it?"

Chief Harmen hesitated. He glanced at Miles, looking for a response. When he got none, he turned back to Stacy. "You'll have to ask Four Eyes. He's the record keeper." He then turned to me. "Out of respect for her mother, I'll allow her to stay out of her ball. Just make sure she stays in the building and out of trouble."

"Where is Four Eyes?" Stacy demanded.

"Jail cells, as far as I remember," Chief Harmen replied. Stacy made for the door, but Chief Harmen blocked her way. "Not yet."

The two stared at each other in silence for ages before Stacy finally stepped back. I moved forward and carefully led her back to the table. I held her close by my side, and I could feel the tension in her body.

"I assume you found your Moemon scattered across the city, and they got you here. My question is, how did you survive?"

"I-" I began, before I was quickly cut off.

Assistant Chief Miles jabbed a finger at the map on the wall. An incredibly detailed map that had been drawn and redrawn to illustrate the constantly changing territories of the three gangs. The map had a noticeable majority green indicating the Kanto Kings' held most of the city, while there was no red anywhere.

"Which of the three gangs helped you," Miles clarified.

I decided not to lie. "All three helped in one way or another. They all got me through the city."

"Who are you siding with?"

"None of them."

"Did they not try to convince you?"

"Of course they did," I muttered. "That's why I was kidnapped in the first place. But I said I wouldn't join them, and they let me go."

"Who's 'they'?"

"All of them," I answered. They all did it in some way. All three of them.

"So you were in Donavan Tower before it fell?" asked Chief Harmen. "You saw Greg?"

I hesitated; I didn't like the hint of suspicion in his voice. "I did."

"Did you see anything suspicious on your visit to the Celadon Saviors?"

I knew exactly what he meant by 'suspicious'. It was a war, but he was focused only on the bomb. "No," I said simply. "Nothing like that."

Chief Harmen nodded grimly. "It may be a war, but the police will have to investigate that tower at some point. I don't know anyone else who would be able to give a statement."

I shrugged. "I can't help you there. I wish I knew, too. Whoever did it has caused me so many fucking problems."

"We can guess why. We confiscated several radios from the Kanto Kings," said Miles, pointing to one that was resting on the table next to us. "We know exactly why he wants you, Arthur."

"We understand Marcus has gone mad with rage," added Chief Harmen. "He's sent his entire army searching after you."

"I know," I muttered. "He told me himself. He called me when I escaped. Do you remember Eric, the other Challenger?"

"Mayor Porter's assistant," Chief Harmen nodded.

"He's being held captive by the Kanto Kings. Marcus threatened to kill him if I don't turn myself in to face punishment for my crime."

"Because he assumes you planted the bomb."

"Because he thinks I killed his father," I clarified. "He doesn't care about the bomb; he just wants justice for Kevin."

"Vigilantism," Chief Harmen spat, shaking his head. "He doesn't have proof of crime. There isn't even proof. He has no right to make that threat."

"Should've sent him to Hoenn when he was a kid," Miles said. "Growing up in this corrupted city, shadowing a man who the city treated like a savior for years, being hated by most of his peers. Never could've turned out well for the lad."

"Can't recall a single friend he's ever had in my time," added Chief Harmen. "I've been called to investigate too much violence and too many disappearances ties to the Monroes than I'd care to think about. The boy's seen too much, and he's only had his father for support. Now he's the leader of a people who don't truly respect him. Just his father and his legacy."

I turned from one to the other in confusion. "He looked respected to me. The people loved him before he changed."

Miles smiled knowingly. "They loved his father. I never met a Kanto King who had many good words about the son. Oh sure, he was handsome and charming, but he was an impulsive fool." He nodded to the radio. "Although it even surprised me to hear the insanity spewing from his mouth. I never expected such a quick turn."

Chief Harmen stepped away from the door. "I suppose that's enough for now. You're safe in this station. We have enough defenses to defend against the tide of the Kanto Kings, should it come to it. Even if they know you're here, they won't get you."

I nodded. That was the best thing I could've heard. "What about Eric?"

Chief Harmen nodded thoughtfully. "That's a problem. He's no doubt deep in Kanto Kings' territory-" he jabbed a finger at the Celadon Department Store. "Guarded heavily by Marcus himself. A search and rescue operation would not be successful with the resources we have. We'll need time to consider a plan. Did Marcus give you a time to surrender yourself?"

I shook my head.

"Then assume that you have time. Let us consider our options while you peruse our evidence," Chief Harmen lowered his head as he looked at Stacy. "And, again, I give my condolences for your loss. Your father was a great man."

Stacy grabbed my arm and barged out of the room. As the door creaked behind us, I heard Chief Harmen bark orders into his radio.

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy

Eric:

Helen the Drowzee


	14. Chapter 13: Geoffrey

Stacy threw open the door to the jail cells and hurried down the stone steps. I had to struggle to keep from losing my footing; she walked too quick for my liking. She leapt down the last few steps, mercifully letting go of me before leaping and allowing me to stumble down at my own pace.

As I landed on the bottom step, the jail room opened into a large basement that seemed to cover the entire area of the building. Several large cages and small rooms covered in bulletproof glass lined the room, and surprisingly the majority of the cells were occupied. Dozens of men and women rested in the cages, nearly all wearing red or green and segregated by color. There were only two men wearing blue sitting in the nearest glass case.

Stacy had stopped in front of an officer sitting at a desk watching the jailed. The officer wore large thick-rimmed spectacles which magnified his eyes so that they appeared to be bursting out of his head. His young face peered nervously as Stacy as she questioned him, and he stuttered as he whispered an answer.

I came over in the middle of Stacy's questioning. "Do you not know Patricia Quill?" She demanded.

"I… uh… the… the… the name rings a bell, I think?" His nasally voice whined. Approaching, I noticed the uniform was far too big for the kid, and that he had no decorations pinned onto his suit. He was an obvious rookie. "I think she's dead."

Stacy stared at him. "She's my mother. I need you to find her case or to direct me toward it."

"I don't think I can do that!" Four Eyes said quickly. "I need Chief Harmen to tell me."

"Chief Harmen gave us permission," I interjected. I stood next to Stacy, keeping a firm hand on her wrist to prevent her from running off. "Ask him yourself."

"I can't. I can't leave my post!"

I pointed with my free hand to the radio resting on his belt. "Call him, then. Just make it quick." I couldn't help eyeing the numerous people lined along the walls; I didn't want to know what war crimes the committed.

Four Eyes nodded and turned on his radio. "Uh… Chief…?"

There was a pause. "Four Eyes?" A voice that was unmistakably not Chief Harmen's asked. "Why are you calling me again?"

"You're… you're not Chief Harmen?"

The voice snorted. "Like I could handle that kind of stress. His number's 064, not 364, Four Eyes. This is like the third time, I swear."

"Sorry… sorry…" Four Eyes mumbled, turned a dial, and said uncertainly, "Chief?"

"Four Eyes," Chief Harmen grumbled. "Give them what they want." He hung up.

Four Eyes still hesitated, averting his eyes from Stacy's intense stare. He pulled out a key from the desk and tentatively handed it to us. "It should be in the Moemon section. Case… 7S42SR."

Stacy snatched the key and made her way to the staircase, but a voice from the cells shouted at us. "You! I know you!"

I stopped despite myself. I recognized the voice. Stacy stopped as well, turning to me impatiently. I turned to the cells, and one of the Mewtwo's Apostles stared back. Geoffrey, the doorman that I met an eternity ago.

"Hold on," I whispered to Stacy. "I won't be long."

I walked over to the cell and stood a few inches away. I didn't know how to react. I barely knew the man, so I didn't feel sympathy for him. Under the bright basement lights, he looked far uglier than he had in the darkness of night. His bandana had been lost, revealing that he had completely lost his left eye. It must have happened years ago, since it had scabbed over. Everything about him looked too big, and he hunched over as if unable to support the weight of his head.

"You're here," he noted. I knew immediately that this was not the same Geoffrey who I met guarding the Apostles. His mouth had recently bled, and he was missing some teeth. His arm was hastily bandaged, and the knot was coming loose as blood dripped from the wound. His voice was barely a timid whisper. "Where's Mary Beth?"

I looked at him curiously. "She's… she's dead."

"No," Geoffrey shook his head, closing his eye tight. "You're lying! Everyone says she's dead! She can't be dead!"

"She was in the tower when it fell," I explained. "She couldn't have survived."

"You're lying!" Geoffrey shouted. Some other prisoners turned toward us curiously. We were getting too much unwanted attention. Geoffrey started to sniffle, and snot dripped from him. "She saved me. I wanted to protect her. She can't be gone. I need to protect her."

I didn't want to talk to him, but curiosity got the better of me. "How did she save you?"

"I was a bad person," Geoffrey whispered. "I did awful things. I… I made a lot of mistakes." He pointed a swollen finger at Stacy. "Her, I know her. I did things to her." He pointed up to the ceiling. "To them. I did bad things to them. I need… I need Mary Beth to save me again so I can atone."

I turned to Stacy, who was staring at him with a mixture of curiosity and astonishment. "To her?" I repeated. "You've never met her."

Geoffrey sniffed, took another look at her, and shook his head. "Sorry, not her. Someone who looked similar to her. My worst mistake…"

Stacy approached, staring at Geoffrey intensely. "Someone who looked like an older me?" She asked carefully.

Geoffrey nodded slowly. I called Four Eyes over. "Why's he in jail?"

Four Eyes furrowed his brow in thought. His spectacles dangled dangerously on the tip of his small nose. "Some men to the east brought him over. They never explained why."

I turned back to Geoffrey to ask him the same question. Stacy placed her hand on the glass, and Geoffrey watched it curiously. "Stacy?" I asked.

"I need to know," Stacy whispered. "The woman you're thinking of, was she in an apartment building?"

At that, I knew exactly why Stacy was so curious. I quickly moved to her and held her shoulders. It was the same tension. I started to hate that tension.

"Yes," Geoffrey whispered. He seemed to have known as well. He looked down at her feet, unable to look her in the eyes.

"How did she die?" Stacy asked, her voice quivering. I tightened my grip on her shoulders; I needed her calm.

Geoffrey shook his head. "I don't want to remember. Mary Beth told me to forget."

Stacy wrenched away from my grip and turned toward the stairs. "7S42SR?" She repeated as she passed Four Eyes.

"Oh… yeah, I think so," Four Eyes said after a moment of surprise. With that, Stacy sprinted up the stairs.

But I needed to know, for his sake. I had a bad feeling I knew what Stacy was going to find. "Geoffrey, why are you in jail right now?" I asked. "How'd you get injured? I thought you were guarding the meeting building."

"I was, but I heard we were losing the fight so I wanted to help. I heard that Mary Beth was in the tower, and I feared she was kidnapped. I shouldn't have let her go; I should've followed her. But I didn't, and she was with the Saviors. I fought and fought, and we were winning, but then the tower started to fall.

"I screamed, I shouted, I panicked. I sprinted into the battlefield. I got hit, but I didn't care. I pushed past the Saviors as they were staring at their tower falling. I ran as fast as I could. I could hear her screaming; I knew I could. But then the tower fell, and the dust blew me away. I hit a wall, hurt my face bad. It was dark and warm and suffocating; I could taste blood and dust and dirt. I wanted to find her, I wanted to search the tower for her to save her, but the Apostles got to me. They pulled me away, away from the battlefield. I tried to fight them, tried to break free, but I couldn't.

"So I ran… I ran back home to protect myself. But I ran into the police. I tried to get them to help, but they wouldn't. I screamed at them, they screamed at me and pointed their guns at me. They wanted me to calm down, but I couldn't! Mary Beth was in trouble, and I couldn't do anything to help her! So they arrested me and brought me here with a bunch of other people."

I processed his story quietly. He seemed close to breaking down through most of it; he sniffed and sniveled and whimpered. For such a brute of a man, he had completely broken without Mary Beth.

"You said you hurt the police?" I asked for clarification.

He closed his eyes as if the thought pained him. "I…" He paused, looking fearfully at Four Eyes. "I can't…"

Four Eyes blinked curiously. "Why not?" Geoffrey simply looked down at his uniform.

"Because you're the police," I reasoned. "It doesn't really matter; you're in jail already."

Geoffrey shook his head. "Not for what I deserve."

Four Eyes looked up the stairs. "You'd better see where your Moemon went; she's taking a long time."

I nodded. I was getting worried myself. I ran up the stairs two at a time and saw the doors to the evidence rooms were open. Stacy sat on the ground and rummaged through boxes filled with files. The same intense concentration.

I knocked, and Stacy barely acknowledged me. "Are you looking for proof?" I asked.

Stacy nodded. "He admitted it," she said calmly, although I knew better to believe she truly was calm. "I simply need the proof."

"And then what?" I moved over to a random box and absentmindedly flipped through the folders.

"I'll get justice for my mother's murder."

I was afraid of that. "Stacy, we're in a police station, and he's in jail. You'll get us in trouble."

Stacy's mouth twitched in amusement. "You're not worried about me suggesting murder?"

I absolutely was. But I also understood Stacy's desire for revenge. I tried choosing my words carefully. "You said it yourself: you want justice. Your mother's murderers… they deserve to be punished for their crime. If you avenge your mother, that's justice." I paused, and she turned to me as if expecting me to continue. "You're intelligent and calculating and – at times – incredibly cold, and you never let emotions cloud your judgment."

"I am not blinded by emotion," Stacy stated.

"Not blinded," I admitted. "But you're acting out of rage. If you find out Geoffrey truly did play a part in your mother's death, and you decide to kill him, nothing good will come of it."

"A murderer will be dead."

"You'll just replace him."

"My mother is innocent; that man is guilty."

I paused, then I walked over to the door and closed and locked it. Stacy watched me suspiciously as I pulled out my Moeballs and let my Moemon loose. I wanted to weigh their opinions, to see if they sided with her or not. It didn't take them long to get used to their surroundings, and they listened to me explain the situation. I finished and turned back to the boxes while they tried talking to Stacy, who was intentionally ignoring me.

"Will you truly kill him?" asked Rose softly.

"If he is guilty."

"Do you think he deserves it?" asked Olivia.

Stacy turned to her. "My mother is dead. I will do whatever it takes to avenge her."

Olivia didn't back down from the stare. "You didn't answer my question," she said defiantly.

"Yes, he does."

Olivia nodded. "Then I'll support you."

"It's vengeance," Bailey added, shrugging. "That's the best reason to kill someone."

"He hurt you," Annie piped up, trying to sound supportive. "You should hurt him!"

Rose picked Annie up and hushed her. "That's not what you should say," she whispered. "You shouldn't want to hurt him. It's not the right path."

"It's the path I chose," said Stacy. "I do not want you to follow me, little one."

"But he hurt you!" Annie pouted.

"And I will hurt him, but this is my choice. Do not learn from me; I will no doubt regret doing this. You already have too many regrets."

Annie tilted her head in confusion. "But why do it?"

Stacy sighed, no doubt out of annoyance from having to repeat herself. She walked over to Annie and patted her head. "Because he hurt my family. I can't have that."

"And we're family, right?"

Stacy nodded. "We're family. I'd do the same if anyone hurt any of you."

Annie smiled. "I love you, Stacy."

"I love you too," Stacy looked up to Rose.

Rose frowned. "We all love you. But I wish you would reconsider. I hope he truly isn't the man you believe he is."

"A part of me wishes the same."

"I don't support your decision, but I support you," Rose smiled apologetically. "I hope it's enough."

Christine walked over and folded her arms. "On the roof, you asked if Arthur would act different if it was my family. What did you mean by that?"

"Is now really the time?"

"Yes."

Stacy turned to her, mirroring her pose. "You are his first and his favorite; he would do anything for you. I wanted to know if he felt the same about all of us; if he would do anything for all of us."

I paused from my searching and felt the need to add my input. "Of course I would. You're all my family. You don't have to doubt that for an instant. I'm there for all of you."

"Of course you are!" said Christine, grinning to me. "I know that!" She turned to Stacy, and her grin faded. "Stacy, I want you to promise me that you'll never say anything like that again."

"My fears were assuaged when you all came with me," said Stacy. "I will never say what I said on that roof."

Christine nodded, and her grin returned. "Then, as your family, I support you. If you want to do this, you will do this."

Finally, Stacy turned to me. "Will you stop me?"

I hesitated. I was with Rose: I didn't want Geoffrey to be what we believed he was. I wanted to avoid any possible problems. I wanted to avoid this exact dilemma. I didn't want to be indirectly responsible for another lost life; if I let Stacy go through with her revenge, I would be. I'd seen too much bloodshed already. If she went through with it, we'd have the entire police after us. I knew her intentions, and I could easily stop her.

But she was my Moemon, and she was my family. I was an idiot who was terrible with confrontation, and I saw the passion and fire in her eyes. I knew that if I stopped her, she would never forgive me. I couldn't. I couldn't lose her.

I shook my head. "If we find what you want, I won't stop you."

Stacy's mouth twitched into the hint of a smile. "If I find what I want, I won't need to be stopped."

It didn't take much longer to find the folder. Rose found it in a box hidden in the corner. She held it close to her chest as she read the number out for us, and we rushed over to her. She carefully handed it to Stacy, who held it as if it was priceless. She opened the folder, and a loose newspaper clipping fluttered out and landed at my feet.

I took it and examined it. It was a carefully cut article about Chief Harmen giving a eulogy at Patricia Quill's funeral. The picture that accompanied it had a few dozen people dressed in black standing above a plot of ground just outside the city. Ronald Quill and his family were at the front, but I recognized nobody else. The article itself told little that wasn't already known: it noted the police's unwillingness to release information and the subsequent disappointment of Celadon City's citizens.

I looked up and saw that Stacy's arms were shaking. Her face gave nothing away, so I could only assume it was a mixture of rage and surprise. Stacy seemed to finish her silent reading, looked up to me, and handed me the folder. My Moemon's eyes followed the folder as I took it. I gave Stacy a worrying look, but she seemed not to be willing to run away, and started reading through the remaining contents of the folder. There were three pages. The first was a police report.

" _On a date over a year ago, the police station suddenly received several phone calls from the Celadon Apartment Complex. All reported similar things: Seven people sprinting through the building, up the stairs, and to the thirty-second floor. There were several shouts of anger from the assailants, and then screams, and then the sound of a door being broken down. A few seconds later, there was a loud shout of pain as one of the assailants sprinted out of the room and down the stairs clutching his face. One other assailant followed him shortly after, and both left the building._

" _The remaining five remained in the room until police arrived. They were found completely enthralled in their attack. Patricia Quill was stripped down, bound, gagged, and stabbed in multiple places. By the time the police arrived, she had succumbed to her wounds, and four of the five were quickly arrested. The fifth, a woman, managed to evade police until she reached the roof. With nowhere to go, she leapt off to her death._

" _The arrested assailants all wore the typical garb of the Celadon Saviors Blood at the scene revealed that one of the assailants was a Geoffrey Durnam, a janitor at Celadon City Elementary. The remaining assailant was wearing a ski mask and gloves and thus was unidentifiable. Unfortunately, as the four arrested men were being transferred to their jail cells, they were attacked by multiple convicts who had managed to break free. In the ensuing gang war, all four were killed._

" _Geoffrey has gone into hiding, but the police will not allow the information that two assailants are still at large, for the public's interest. Photos taken of the seven assailants entering were confiscated and are held by the police. Chief Harmen has taken a special interest in this case and has taken over the report."_

The second page was a collage of black and white photos of all seven entering and Geoffrey and the mysterious assailant leaving. Geoffrey seemed to be clutching his left eye as he sprinted from the building, and the mysterious assailant was still wearing his mask. The other five didn't matter much; they were dead.

There wasn't much on the final page. Chief Harmen had written a few notes down about the case. "RONALD QUILL – In Danger?!" was the largest in the direct center. Arrows pointed from Geoffrey to random scratched out names suggesting possible leads that all led to nothing. Finally, in the bottom right, in small letters as if an afterthought: "Saffron City? Hunters?"

I closed the folder, and we all turned to Stacy. Our assumptions had been confirmed. All of the evidence pointed to Geoffrey being there. Stacy didn't say a word. She looked at each of us in turn, and then sprinted to the door. I dropped the folder as we followed her down to the jail cells. She ran up to Four Eyes, who had finally calmed down from the intrusion earlier.

"Give me the key to that cell," she demanded, pointing at Geoffrey. Geoffrey was still pressed against the glass watching her.

"I… I can't…" Four Eyes stuttered, his eyes darting from Stacy to the jail to us as we approached. "I can't do that!"

"I will have those keys," Stacy stated, slamming her fist on the desk, shaking it and Four Eyes. "Give it to me."

"I won't!" Four Eyes cried. He pulled his radio up to his neck and dialed a number. "Chief! This girl from earlier is demanding the key!"

There was a pause. Then Chief Harmen's voice answered: "Four Eyes, come up here for a minute. I need you here."

Four Eyes blinked in confusion. "Sir? What did you just-"

"Four Eyes, I need you up here, now," Chief Harmen commanded. "That's an order."

"But, sir, the cells-"

"An order, Four Eyes!" Chief Harmen demanded. "Get up here in the next ten seconds, or I will send you out there without your rifle!"

Four Eyes cried out in panic and ran up the stairs. He closed the door behind him. While the rest of us looked at each other trying to interpret what had happened, Stacy moved behind the desk and rummaged through the drawers. She found a key ring and rushed over to the glass cell.

"Geoffrey," I said, getting his attention so that he couldn't watch her. "What happened last year?"

Geoffrey's gaze dropped to my feet. "I... I wish I could confess. I don't have think I have the time."

"I will give you time to confess," Stacy called as she found the key. The door slid open, and Stacy stepped inside. The other man in blue attempted to push past her, but she grabbed him by the shoulder and threw him against the wall, knocking the wind out of him. He sank to the ground. Geoffrey didn't make the same attempt. "What did you do to my mother?"

Geoffrey eyed her feet. "I was a good person. I was born a Celadon Savior, and I thought I would die one. That changed… six years ago. They made me do something horrible."

"Six…" Stacy repeated. "Do not tell me you murdered my father as well!"

Geoffrey shook his head. "Worse. I started the civil war." He looked at me, tears flowing from his eyes. "I was part of the team who attacked the police station."

I let that sink in. Hundreds if not thousands of people were killed because of him. I stared at him with newfound hatred. He was the reason why we were all in this fucking mess. "Why?"

"Because Greg told me to do it," Geoffrey answered softly. "Because they paid me and told me we'd win. We didn't win… so I hid. I thought I was safe when the war was over, but… danger is a drug. I got bored, and I wanted to go back to the Celadon Saviors. There were rumors they were readying another attack. But nobody remembered me, so I had to do an initiation. They told seven of us to go to the Celadon Apartment Complex and kill a woman.

"So we found out which apartment and went in. We broke down her door, but she was a Moemon. She sliced at us with her claws, and one of them pushed me forward and her claw caught my eye. I was blinded and in so much pain, I stumbled out of the building. I ran and ran until I reached the cathedral. I didn't dare go to the hospital. I collapsed, and when I woke up, Mary Beth was there to help.

"She saved me. I told her all of my sins, and she forgave me. She told me to forget them so I could be born anew, but I could never forget. She protected me, kept me safe from anyone who might remember me. I had a new life, and I wanted to save her like she saved me."

He smiled softly, as if was a fond memory. "I failed her. I suppose my sins have finally caught up to me."

"They sure have," I muttered. Whatever sympathy I might have had was gone. He didn't seem to fully understand how many horrible things he did. Or maybe he truly forgot. It made him feel better, but it didn't take back the losses.

"You weren't there when my mother died?" asked Stacy.

"No… I had no idea… I don't know what happened to any of the others. Mary Beth shielded me from everything."

"They're all dead," I stated. "All but one. The one in the ski mask."

"Nathan," Geoffrey nodded. "Good for him. He was a good man."

"Fuck off," I said. "He's a murderer just like you."

"I… I don't deny that."

Stacy stepped forward. "You were one of the men who killed my mother," she declared. "You may not have touched her, but you had the full intent. As her daughter, I will avenge her."

Geoffrey stood up to full height and nodded. "I understand."

Stacy bared her claw. "Do you have any final words?"

"I deserve this," Geoffrey replied. He gave a sad smile. "Don't feel bad; I would die one way or another. I'll be able to see Mary Beth again."

The two stood in silence, Stacy standing with her hand raised, ready to strike. She was hesitating. She was focused solely on Geoffrey, but her body would not let her move. She tried to push forward, tried to fight herself. But she refused to move.

She couldn't do it. I placed a hand on the glass. "Stacy," I said softly. "It's okay. Your mother-"

That was the word. The mention of her mother renewed her strength. She suddenly screamed with all the anger, the anguish, the fury, and the pain that she was pushing deep within her. Everything was released at the very thought of her mother. She charged forward and scraped her sharp claws straight through his neck.

Geoffrey's eyes opened in shock, and he gasped as he recoiled from the strike. Blood gushed from the wound as he spluttered and struggled to breathe. He stayed upright for what felt like a millennium, and then he dropped. His body gave one last gasp as he tried to fight in the inevitable, and then it silenced as he finally gave up.

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy

Eric:

Helen the Drowzee


	15. Chapter 14: Chief Harmen

Stacy stood staring at the dark red blood that coated her fingers. As usual, her face gave nothing away; she didn't betray the slightest shame, excitement, relief, or regret. She took one glance at the body slowly leaking blood and walked out the cell. She closed the door behind her and locked it, placed the key on the desk, and wiped her fingers with a handkerchief.

Then she walked over to me and gave me a hug. I barely reacted; my eyes were solely on Geoffrey. On the blood pooling beneath him. If Stacy felt nothing, I certainly did. I suddenly wished I had stopped her in some way. I didn't care how much he deserved it. I made another mistake.

"Thank you," Stacy whispered, face muffled by my shoulder. "I promise you won't get in trouble."

"I… I don't think I'm worried about that," I whispered.

"What the fuck?" A jailed man shouted in disgust. Nearly every eye in the basement was on us. They'd all seen the murder. Some looked impressed, others terrified, and even more disgusted. With that exclamation, the silence was broken, and suddenly the entire room shouted at us.

"Where do you get off doing that?"

"Why do you get to walk free?"

"I didn't hurt anyone, and I'm stuck here!"

"What did he do to deserve that?"

"Where are the police? Where's that wimp?"

"What the hell is wrong with you?"

"Fucking Moemon! I knew this would happen!"

The voices started to blend together. My Moemon looked around the room, their own expressions a mixture of fear and defiance. They bunched closer together just in case the uproarious prisoners managed to escape. I decided that we'd done what we needed to do.

"Let's get out of here," I shouted over the cacophony. The girls unanimously agreed, and we headed up the stairs. When I broke away from Stacy, the girls took their turns comforting her.

We closed the door behind us, muffling the prisoners. We got some curious looks from nearby officers, but nobody questioned us. I didn't know what to do. I didn't know if we were going to be in trouble. Should we run, or should we stay and accept the consequences?

The answer was given for me: Four Eyes opened the door to the planning room. He watched us fearfully, his hand twitching near his gun.

"Chief… wants to see you," he said, stepping aside.

I nodded, and we moved past him. He shut the door behind us, leaving us with Chief Harmen and Assistant Chief Miles. Both had grim expressions on their face, and both watched us enter.

"It's done?" Chief Harmen asked vaguely. I nodded slowly, and he turned to Miles. "Clean the body. It's a shame some prisoners got out and killed him in the scuffle."

Miles nodded. "Real tragedy," he grumbled. He left the room.

Chief Harmen sighed and removed his cap to rub his greying hair. It was the first time he showed exhaustion, and in that one instant he seemed to have aged several decades. He looked like a tired old man who just wanted to be done with his job.

"I didn't know the Quills too well," he said, gazing at Stacy. "I knew your father and your uncle, and they're both respectful, accomplished men. I only knew you and your mother in passing. What happened to your parents was a tragedy, and I did everything in my power to ensure justice was done. Your father's murderers were all tragically killed in their prisons. There were no witnesses willing to testify. The same with all but two of your mother's murderers. All tragically met their ends shortly after imprisonment.

"I knew who Geoffrey was. I recognized him from the first war. I thought all of the attackers fell, but one seemed to have escaped. If you didn't come, he also would've met a tragic end. At least this gave you the chance to enact some sort of vengeance for your family."

Stacy nodded silently, while I judged Chief Harmen with new eyes. This wasn't a righteous officer; this was a man willing to slip into the darkness to enact justice. I expected him to be by-the-books and merciful even to the harshest criminal. But he was not pure; he gave into his demons like everyone else.

"He admitted he was part of the attack," I said.

"Confessing his sins, no doubt," noted Chief Harmen with rough amusement.

"My mother clawed out his eye," added Stacy with a hint of pride. "Her final act of defiance."

"He also mentioned someone named Nathan. He was the man in the ski mask."

"The one man we never managed to catch," Chief Harmen sighed. "Nathan? I don't have the connections to find him."

"You thought he was a Hunter?" I asked. "In your notes?"

"Witnesses believed a man in a ski mask left out of the eastern gate. Some of my officers who visited Saffron heard rumors of a Hunter in a ski mask."

"Does he never take it off?" Olivia muttered.

"In Saffron City?" I repeated, glancing at Stacy as she returned the look. We both seemed to be thinking similarly: if he truly was a Hunter, we'd likely face him at one point, provided we survive this war. "Are… are Hunters usually named after their names?"

Chief Harmen raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean by that?"

"Geoffrey said his name was Nathan," I explained. "Every Hunter we've seen so far has been some form of 'Hunter' and then a letter. J, X, W, G-" And then I remembered the folder Hunter G had given us. I tried recalling the descriptions she gave us. I didn't remember anything about a ski mask. Quinton had the folder. "I need to make a call."

The call was well past due, anyway. I hadn't spoken to Quinton in over a day. He didn't even know I'd found any of my Moemon. He was still just outside the city, and nobody else had moved. The competition had been put on hold because of this civil war, not that it really mattered when our lives were in danger. I just wanted to survive and to save Eric.

Quinton answered his watch nearly immediately. "Arthur?" He sounded exhausted. It was early morning, admittedly. "Thank goodness you're still alive!"

"Quinton, I'm with the police," I said. "I found them. All of them. We're all safe."

"Really? You actually did it?" Quinton laughed. "You idiot! I can't believe you actually walked across the whole city!" I smiled. I had a feeling he was watching me. "Are you going to leave, now that you've found them?"

I bit my lip. I didn't want to worry him, but I couldn't think of a good excuse why I couldn't just leave. So, I told him everything. From the tower falling to Marcus's madness to Eric's capture. I barely had to think about what to say; the words seemed to fall out of my mouth. When I finished, Quinton didn't answer.

"So, I'm done," I muttered awkwardly. "If, you know, you had any questions."

"We know where all of the others are," Quinton reasoned. "So Marcus knows you're with the police."

I nodded. Then I remembered Quinton couldn't see me. "I figured that out. But Marcus never gave me a time limit, so I have until then to think of something."

"What if you can't rescue him?" Quinton asked. "What if it wasn't an empty threat?"

After hearing Marcus, I had no doubt it was a real threat. "Eric's suffered enough," I answered. "I don't want him to be hurt anymore because of me."

"That wasn't really an answer."

"You didn't give me a good question to answer," I countered, annoyed. "'What if Eric dies because of me?' you asked. He'll die because of me!"

"Sorry," Quinton muttered. "I just… I wish I could help."

I sighed. "You can't. I'm just venting. Nobody here has a good plan either. Unless some miracle happens, this war is going to last a long time. There's no good time to rescue him." I wanted desperately to change the subject. Talking about it just reminded me how hopeless it felt. "How are the others doing?"

"They're worried sick," answered Quinton. "I think after they hear what you've been through, they'll forgive us for running off. Nobody's mad at us."

"They'll forgive us?" I repeated, insulted. Forgiving us was the least they could do. "They better damn well forgive us! They forced us out!"

"I know. They understand as well, and they've apologized to me."

"They didn't call me," I said bitterly.

"I told them what you were planning on doing. In case you needed to be stealthy, I advised them not to call you."

I was still bitter. "Fair enough," I admitted. "I don't really want to talk to them, anyway. Once this whole damn thing is over."

Quinton didn't believe me. "Once it's over," he repeated.

"How… how's Garrett?"

"He's doing well. He sounded relieved that I was safe and that you were alive. Gloria evolved."

I smiled. "Into a beautiful woman?"

"It happened yesterday. Garrett sounded ecstatic over the watch."

"I bet a lot of the others are jealous."

Quinton hesitated. "The others have been training as well. Some of them are… probably stronger than us."

"Is that right?" I asked absentmindedly. I'd barely thought about training. I'd forgotten that the others had several days more training than us. "How interesting…"

"Are you doing okay?"

"No," I said bluntly. "I'm fucking miserable. Everything's been shit, and I'm stuck in the middle of it. I want to fucking leave, Quinton! Why can't this be easy?"

"Because nothing ever is."

"You're an awful therapist."

"If you need someone to talk to, please don't hesitate to call me," said Quinton. "I don't want you to think that I'm belittling you, but you are going to be affected by what you've been through. You shouldn't suppress anything."

"I know," I sighed. Fifteen eyes. An ocean of blood populated by thousands of corpses. I shook my head; shook the thoughts away. "God why couldn't this war have just… happened without us?"

I didn't want him to answer this. I changed the subject again. "Listen, Quinton, do you still have that folder that Hunter G gave us?"

Quinton rummaged through his backpack for a few seconds, and then replied, "I have it here. Why do you need it?"

"Describe Hunter N to me."

"Looks to be a man in his mid-twenties. Messy brown hair. Blue eyes. Face usually covered by a ski mask."

I looked at Stacy. "He was part of the group who killed Stacy's mother."

"Killed her mother… wait, how do you know that?"

"We're going to see him eventually, Quinton. Watch out for him."

"You don't know that."

I smirked. "Of course I do. It's my fucking luck."

* * *

We weren't in trouble. None of the prisoners' testimonies would be believed, and the body was cleaned of any outside DNA. Four Eyes would keep silent, and nobody else knew. That was what we were told by Chief Harmen. We had free reign of the police station, and my Moemon were allowed to stay out of their balls.

"I think you need to talk," Chief Harmen reasoned, looking from me to Stacy. "I wouldn't postpone that."

We decided to stay in the evidence room away from prying eyes. We locked ourselves in and sat in a circle in the center. Stacy clutched her mother's police report to her chest and stared at the ground, while the rest of us watched.

"How are you feeling?" Rose asked carefully.

"I feel nothing," Stacy replied. She didn't seem like she was hiding her emotions. "I… I don't know what I should feel."

"Regret?" Christine suggested. "Relief? Happiness?"

Stacy shook her head at each suggestion. "I want to feel happy. I feel… empty."

"You ever kill before?" asked Bailey.

Stacy looked at her, and then she slowly nodded. "Once. In a Moemon battle between Challengers. It was kill or be killed."

"What'd you feel then?"

"Relief," Stacy replied. "Triumph. Satisfaction."

"You felt good then because it was an obstacle you overcame," reasoned Bailey. "You feel nothing now because you basically slaughtered someone who didn't pose a threat to you."

"Are you implying that I can't feel anything if it isn't a challenge?"

Bailey smirked condescendingly. "I'm not a therapist; I don't care enough. You're the one who feels emptier than usual. You figure it out."

"Do you think he deserved to die?" asked Christine.

Stacy nodded slowly. "I have no doubt."

"Then why don't you feel glad that a man who deserved to die is dead?"

Stacy didn't reply. She shook her head, still staring at the floor.

Christine pouted. "I'd have felt better if you shouted at me in frustration."

"I don't feel frustrated."

"Don't you care that you don't feel anything?"

"I… I should…"

"But you don't."

"I don't."

"So why don't you care?" Christine asked softly.

Silence. She didn't know. Rose leaned forward on her knees.

"Do you believe your mother would be happy?"

"I don't remember."

Rose frowned. "Would you like to guess? Recall your last moments with her. Her last desire was to see you out of danger, correct?" Stacy nodded. "You are out of danger. I believe she would be happy."

"She never fought," countered Stacy. "She was too tired to fight. I do not know if she disliked fighting; when she taught me how to take care of myself, she seemed to teach it out of necessity."

"You think she wouldn't have wanted you to be the one to kill him?" asked Olivia.

Stacy shook her head. "She wouldn't."

"Even to avenge her?"

"He never hurt her," Stacy whispered. "She hurt him, and he fled."

"He was going to hurt her. He was part of the group who hurt her. You said so yourself," said Olivia.

"I… I justified my desire. I… I was so furious with everything… I needed…" She stopped, clutching the folder so tight she bent it.

"Stacy?" Olivia whispered.

Something dropped from Stacy's face. A single clear sparkling tear that splashed to the ground. She… my Stacy… she was crying. She sniffed and whimpered, but she let the tears fall. She gasped slightly, as if surprised to see the tears falling.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, shaking her head, trying to shake the sadness away. "I shouldn't… I didn't…"

That was it; they couldn't sit watching anymore. Rose crawled over to her and nearly tackled her in a hug. Bailey sat unmoving, but the rest of my Moemon followed. I hesitated. I didn't feel it was right to interrupt their circle. I felt my own tears coming. The weight of the decision must've only just hit her. She took a life. A life of a man who posed her no danger. It didn't matter if he deserved it; she judged and executed him. She had to carry that burden for the rest of her life.

Then she looked up at me, sniffed, and asked, "Why didn't you hug me back?"

I felt my heart drop. I… I didn't know why. I was staring at the body I barely even felt her against me. I barely reacted to her; I was busy thinking of my own mistake. My own selfish needs. I didn't even think of comforting her.

I opened my mouth to answer, but nothing came. No explanation felt good enough; no excuses felt reasonable enough. I couldn't lie to her. "I… I'm sorry."

I felt my cheeks blush as Stacy looked down. I felt like such an awful person. I supported her, but I didn't truly support her. I let her go down this path, and I did nothing to help.

"Stacy," Christine whispered. "You remember he's human. He isn't used to death… he probably wasn't thinking."

"He looked horrified," added Rose.

Bailey snickered. "Trust me, this trainer can't handle death. He stares at every body like it's going to rise and attack him."

Stacy sniffed and nodded, hopefully understandingly. "Arthur… do you regret supporting me?"

I didn't lie. She needed the truth. I nodded.

"…so do I…" she whispered, clutching her chest. "I shouldn't… I shouldn't have been the one to do it."

"Nobody else could've," said Olivia. "Nobody else deserved to; you deserved it more than anyone."

Stacy blinked away a tear and slowly nodded. "Thank you." The others moved away from her. Her breathing had calmed. She wiped away the tears and set the bent and crumpled folder on the ground.

"I'll take care of it," I offered. I'd lost my backpack when I was arrested, but I had large pockets. "I'll keep it safe."

Stacy hesitated, looking from me to the folder, but then picked it up and got to her feet. She stood in front of me with the folder at her side, watching me.

"Under one condition," she said. Her voice had returned to its usual calmness. I nodded. "Hug me, and promise me that I'm not a monster."

I got to my feet immediately that the request. I pulled her in. "You're not a monster," I whispered. "You're a brave, beautiful girl."

As we pulled apart, I had the folder in my hand. Stacy had a small smile on her face. "I understand your earlier hesitation. I'm sorry for doubting you."

"Doubt me, please, all the time," I replied, smiling. "Otherwise I never would've realized I'd hurt you. I couldn't learn if you all weren't correcting me." I placed a hand on Stacy's shoulder and looked at the rest of them. "That goes for all of you. Remind me when I'm being an idiot. I'm trying my best for you, but I'm not perfect. I can't learn if you all aren't telling me how to learn."

* * *

We weren't interrupted for several hours after our disappearance. After our talk, we decided that a nap was necessary. We slept in a large pile for warmth and protection. I had a dreamless sleep. It was wonderful.

Christine and Stacy leapt to their feet at the sound of a sharp rapping at the door, while the rest of us struggled to get off the ground. I looked through the window and saw a pair of glasses peering at us.

"It's fine," I yawned, patting my bodyguards' heads. "How are you feeling?"

"Much better," Stacy answered, giving a small smile.

I smiled back. "I could get used to that, you know. I like you being a quiet, emotionless badass, but I like you showing emotion more."

Christine wrapped her arm around Stacy's neck and pulled their foreheads together. "We all do."

I unlocked and opened the door and was met with Four Eyes. His initial nervous, paranoid demeanor had been replaced with suspicion. He didn't exchange my smile.

"What do you want?" I asked, more harshly than I'd intended. I'd been the victim of enough suspicion to be sick of it.

"Chief Harmen wants to speak with you. The other high-ranking officers have already gathered."

I nodded and looked back at my Moemon to make sure they all heard. They walked passed us toward the meeting room while Four Eyes and I stood at the end of the hallway.

"Are you not joining us?" I asked.

Four Eyes shook his head. "I've been given another task."

"Not guarding the prisoners anymore?"

That was the wrong thing to say. Four Eyes glared at me as he spat, "That's someone else's job. I'm to travel to the eastern department."

"Why?"

His glare turned to smugness. "None of your concern."

I shrugged. It was a courtesy question; I didn't actually care. "Suit yourself." I patted his shoulder and walked away.

Four Eyes was serious when he said that all of the high ranking officers had gathered; the entire room was filled with men and women. I squeezed behind a pair of elder men in uniforms nearly as decorated as the Chief's in order to reach my Moemon who had found a small clearing near the back. Before I could reach them, however, I heard my name called in a deep booming voice.

"Arthur, you're needed up here," Chief Harmen demanded.

I gave my Moemon an apologetic look before maneuvering myself through the crowd of people and up to the front by Chief Harmen and Assistant Chief Miles' side. Chief Harmen slammed his arm on my shoulder, buckling me.

"This, men and women, is Arthur," Chief Harmen announced, ignoring my wince of pain. "This is one of the Challengers who have found themselves thrust into the middle of this civil war. The other, of course, is why we're gathered here. Arthur has explained the dire situation: the newly appointed leader of the Kanto Kings – Marcus Monroe – is currently holding a Challenger hostage. Marcus made demands: Challenger for Challenger. He suspects that Arthur here played a part in the destruction of Donavan Tower and the subsequent deaths of the three heads of the three gangs. One of whom, of course, was Marcus' father.

"You've heard the radios; you know what Marcus has turned into. His reasons are ludicrous and his justifications preposterous. He has truly gone insane, and he will not listen to reason. The plan we will carry out has two goals: rescue Eric, the Challenger, and subdue Marcus in any way we can.

"Envoy have already been sent to the Mewtwo's Apostles and the Celadon Saviors requesting their assistance. They both should understand that this war cannot be won alone. The Saviors have been crippled significantly, and the Apostles are losing. All that would be required of them would be to attack the Kanto Kings up north as a distraction. If neither group complies, then the plan will still be carried out with significantly more risk.

"Marcus knows Arthur's location thanks to the watch all Challengers wear, so we should assume that he will know that we are planning a rescue operation. We should also assume that Marcus will not leave the Department Store under any condition. So while Arthur will travel with a small team toward the Department Store, the majority of us will infiltrate from the west. We will pose as soldiers, so we will have to shed our uniforms to blend in.

"When we enter the store, we will find Marcus – preferably before Arthur is discovered and captured – and arrest him. We will find Eric and secure him, and then we will escape. We will retrieve Arthur, and then we will all reach the station and wait out the war."

It showed the authority and respect Chief Harmen commanded when not a single person in the room voiced their disapproval. I, naturally, didn't want to be used as bait, and I saw several ways that plan could go wrong. Nobody said anything. Chief Harmen surveyed the entire room waiting for arguments, then when none came he continued.

"Miles will accompany Arthur along with five officers. Marcus' orders are to capture Arthur, so we believe he won't be in any true danger. I will lead the extraction. I'll need two dozen young, capable men and women. Give me your recommendations within the hour; the plan will begin by the end of the day. We were not given a time limit for Arthur turning himself in, but we likely don't have much time left."

I surveyed the room myself, smiling bitterly. None of these officers could be described as 'young' anymore. It wasn't respect that kept them from arguing; they just weren't in danger, so they didn't really care. I felt like I should've argued, but I didn't deserve it. Eric was in this mess because of me; I'd do whatever I could to get him to safety. I just wanted to get out of this city.

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy

Eric:

Helen the Drowzee


	16. Chapter 15: Assistant Chief Miles

There wasn't much discussion once Chief Harmen had finished his explanation. Most of the room dispersed throughout the building in order to recruit volunteers. Barely anyone looked at me; they didn't care that I was a Challenger – which was a nice change – but they didn't even react to sending me out there. There was no sympathy, no regret. I was nothing to them. I didn't want to trust them with my life, but thankfully I wasn't. I was trusting the brave young officers who were actually going to escort me. The real heroes.

Food was being served in the main room, so I gathered my Moemon, collected our meals, and retreated into the evidence room. I barely ate; my body felt heavy. They noticed immediately.

"We'll be with you," Rose said, placing her hand over mine. "You will not travel alone."

"There are so many ways this can go wrong," I said. I could feel fear filling me. I was tempted to call off the mission. "So many ways I'll just be… delivered into Marcus' hands."

"We'll protect you," promised Christine. "They will not get to you."

I shook my head. "I appreciate it, but I don't want you to risk your lives too. This isn't your burden; it's mine."

"It's ours," Olivia corrected firmly.

"It's between me and Eric. Has been since Vermillion."

Olivia pointed at her eyepatch. "It's ours."

I nodded. It was a weak argument; I never expected to persuade them. I looked at Annie, who was smiling happily. "Annie stays in her ball."

The others glanced at her. She pouted, but they admitted that she wasn't ready to take the risk. We finished our meals, but we still had several hours left. I decided to call some of the others. I didn't want to let on that I was going on this mission; I made sure to tell them that I was safe in the police station until the war was over. Nobody could know; they didn't need to worry.

Hannah back in Pewter City was doing well for herself; her waitressing job made her enough money to buy a small apartment, and she was living comfortably with her Pachirisu. She had attempted to catch another Moemon in Route 3, but it ran off before she could catch it. She was happy and peaceful, and that was enough.

Molly never answered my call. She was still in Cerulean City moving throughout the city. Her team hadn't changed, hadn't grown, and hadn't evolved. I had no idea what she was doing, and apparently she hadn't spoken to anyone else since we left the city.

Max was extremely happy to hear my voice. He dragged Sam over so that he could apologize. Sam's apology sounded genuine, and he admitted that he'd have to apologize in person once I got out of the city. Max, meanwhile, never seemed to have doubted me for a second. He understood my position and my desire to escape the increasing tension before something truly irreparable was done.

Everyone else was at least glad to hear that I was safe at that moment. They wished me luck in saving myself and helping Eric, which I promised I'd try my best.

"I know you were scared of us," added Drew quietly during my talk with him. "We were mad, and we still are. But after what we've seen on tv, you've been through enough. It's a worse punishment than I could've come up with."

The last I called was Garrett. It took a while for him to answer, and I nearly hung up after the tenth ring. I heard the click of him answering, and I hesitated. I didn't know what to say. I'd hoped we were still friends, but we didn't separate on good terms. We waited in silence for the other to speak. Finally, Garrett relented. "H… hello? Arthur?"

"How're you doing, man?"

Garrett hesitated this time. "Good. Uh, really good, actually. Gloria evolved.

"I heard!" I said, feigning happiness. "That's amazing! I can't wait to see her!"

"You'll be stunned. She's gorgeous!"

"Don't let her hear you."

"Why not?"

"…because it's Gloria?"

"Oh!" Garrett said with realization. "Oh… right. So, she changed when she evolved. She doesn't act childishly. She's more reserved. You'll see when we meet; you'll really be surprised."

"Yeah, I hope it's soon. I miss you."

"Miss you too, man. We all do. Quinton's been giving updates, but he told us not to call you."

"He told me that. It was smart of him. I had to sneak around, and the watch ringing would've given me away."

"Sneaking?" Garrett repeated. "Damn, man, I wish it wasn't that bad."

"You have no idea. And I'm never going to tell you, so don't ask."

"No worries, man, I wouldn't. I couldn't imagine… but again, when we meet up you can show me your Banette, and I can show you my new team."

"Bailey would love that," I said, smiling at the irritated eavesdropping Moemon. "She's smiling at the thought."

"Gloria will be thrilled."

"I'll see you, man."

"See you too. Good luck. You'll be safe."

I hung up, stared at my watch, and let out a deep frustrated sigh. All of their well wishes meant nothing. They were safe; I was risking my life. Why couldn't they just help me somehow? Why could they just watch?

I punched the ground and immediately regretted that. "Fuck…" I moaned, rubbing my fingers. Through the tears of pain I could see my Moemon watching me worryingly. I'd startled them. "Sorry. Just… frustrated."

"Don't think about it," suggested Rose. "Think about something else. Think about what we'll be doing when we've escaped."

"We're close to evolving," Christine reminded us excitedly. "Pretty much all of us! We're all going to be so strong!"

"We'll be women, soon," noted Olivia.

"I've gotten used to most of you being shorter and younger than me," I added. "It's going to take getting used to."

"You'll still have me," said Rose, smiling sadly. "I don't know when I'll evolve."

It took a moment for me to recall Roselia's evolution. "Shiny Stone," I said, snapping my fingers victoriously. "That's what we need to find."

"What about that crown you wore?" asked Christine. "Wasn't that a stone?"

"A Sun Stone," Rose answered, pulling the sunset-colored stone out of a small pouch beneath a leaf. "A memento I found in the forest. Beautiful but sadly unhelpful."

"Princess Rose," recalled Christine, smiling. "That's what we wanted to call you."

"I'm grateful you did not refer to me as 'Princess.'"

"We could still do it," offered Olivia.

Rose simply smiled. "Should we change your bandages one more time?" I asked.

Olivia rubbed her eyepatch, winced, and nodded. Rose helped me dress the wound and apply a new bandage. I patted Olivia's shoulder once I was done, smiling.

"It looked a lot better," I noted.

"It doesn't hurt much," muttered Olivia. "How long until I don't have to wear the bandage?"

I hesitated. It was still a gaping hole in her head. "I don't think it'd be safe anytime soon," I replied uncertainly. "When we can get to another Center, we'll ask the professionals."

Olivia nodded solemnly. I gave her a hug from behind. "You're so brave, Olivia. I'm so proud of you. Garang would be too."

"It's taken a long time, but I think Garang giving me to you was the best thing he could've done," said Olivia quietly."You've been so good to me. I know I'm not… really your Moemon. But I'm glad to be part of this team."

"Where's this coming from?" I asked. "Olivia, you've always been part of us, even when you were Garang's."

Olivia smiled and turned around. "It's okay, Arthur. I'm not sad. I love you like family."

"We all love you too. You are my Moemon; you're our family."

"I just… I wanted you to know in case something happens."

I felt my stomach drop; I passed my uncertainty and fear onto her. I pulled her back into a hug. "Nothing will happen."

"I know," Olivia said, chuckling slightly. "I just wanted to hear you say it."

I pulled back, looking at her strangely. She gave a sad smile. She was proud about tricking me into admitting we'll be okay, but there was something in her eyes that told me that what she'd said was what she truly felt. She felt like the outsider, like she wasn't truly part of the family just because I wasn't her first trainer. Had she felt this the whole time? Why didn't she say anything?

I couldn't even press her for more. The moment I opened my mouth to reply, a sharp knocking startled me into silence. I leapt to my feet and rushed over to the door, wrenching it open to see Chief Harmen's disgruntled face staring back.

"Envoys returned," he grunted. "No one's helping; we're on our own. Get ready to go. We're out in fifteen."

"Shit," I muttered as Chief Harmen abruptly left. I closed the door and leaned against it. My Moemon watched me worryingly. "Did you guys hear him?"

They nodded. "It shouldn't matter," said Stacy. "Marcus knows we'll be coming from the south. With only a dozen men watching us, their army would overwhelm us regardless of distraction."

"It'd be nice to think someone wanted to help us," I muttered. "Sister Anna's leading the Apostles. She doesn't care about us."

"You'd think she'd want to use it as her advantage," said Bailey. "If she's losing, why not do what she can?"

"She is," answered Stacy. "She simply doesn't want to help us. She doesn't care."

"I got that impression from our first meeting," I said. "I hated that cold, dismissive look she kept giving me. Like I was inferior for being human."

"I thought that was the Apostles' shtick?" asked Bailey.

"Explains a lot," I admitted. "Though they were practically begging for my help earlier. They turned quickly."

There wasn't much we could do. The Mewtwo's Apostles wouldn't help us. I was somewhat surprised. The Celadon Saviors wouldn't help us. I wasn't surprised; they were basically irrelevant. It was just me and the police facing the entirety of the Kanto Kings. All for the sake of saving Eric. He was worth it; I knew he was.

I wished I had more time with my Moemon. We'd only just helped Stacy recover from her distress, and just before taking a huge risk we learned of Olivia's baggage. I wanted to talk to her and help her, but there was no feasible time. We didn't speak much as we gathered our things. We all gave Annie one last hug before recalling her to her ball, and then the six of us exited the evidence room.

The police station was nearly empty; most of the officers had already departed with Chief Harmen. A few elders and wounded scattered around, but the majority of the remaining forces – a solid dozen – stood at the front entrance with Assistant Chief Miles. They watched me approach, their faces a mix of fear and disappointment.

"Are you ready?" asked Miles. His was the only calm face.

I nodded. "Can't wait," I muttered.

"Call him," Miles commanded. "Tell him that you're coming."

My finger hovered over the watch face as I thought of what to say. "Should I say I'm alone?"

"Say you're being escorted."

I tapped the watch. The watch beeped twice before a voice whispered, "Arthur?"

My heart stopped. It was Eric. I looked at Miles, who didn't share my astonishment. I didn't even know he was awake. I looked back at my wrist, my script completely forgotten. "Eric? How… how are you?"

"Arthur… I want to go home," Eric whimpered. "I'm… I'm scared. They won't let me leave… they're saying awful things about you…"

"Where are you?" I asked.

"I'm in some hospital in a really tall building. I just woke up. I think I've been asleep for a long time. They took Helen up to the roof, but they won't let me see her!"

"To the roof?" I repeated. I looked up at Miles for help, and he motioned for me to hang up. I hesitated, but then realized that the longer I spent talking to Eric the more I risked our plan failing. "Okay, Eric… we're going to come get you. Stay quiet, and stay safe. I'm going to hang up. Pretend I never called."

"Wait, Arthu-" I hung up. I felt awful. "Man… the one time I wanted Marcus to pick up."

"If Marcus finds out you spoke to Eric, he would be suspicious that we're planning something," explained Miles. "Wait a few minutes before calling again."

"He sounded terrified," I muttered. I noticed Stacy whispering to Bailey out of the corner of my eye. Bailey nodded and whispered back. "He mentioned that they took his Moemon to the roof."

"Is he still in the same building?"

I looked at my watch, confirmed, and nodded. "Still in the Department Store. He mentioned being in a hospital, so he's probably still on the eighth floor."

Miles nodded and walked away to speak into his radio. I looked back at my Moemon to see what they were thinking, but they were deep in conversation and barely noticed me. I couldn't make out what they were saying, but by the concern on their faces I reasoned they weren't agreeing with each other.

Miles eventually returned and told me to call again. This time the watch rang several times before a voice said, "Arthur!" This time it was Marcus, and he sounded ecstatic. "It's good you finally decided to call! How are the police treating you?"

"I'm planning on surrendering," I stated, ignoring that last remark. "You're holding up your end, right? Me for Eric?"

"Yes," Marcus replied, immediately losing his charisma. "You surrender yourself to me, I let the innocent Challenger go. I haven't harmed him."

"Is he awake?" I asked, testing him.

"He is, actually," Marcus replied. His voice grew fainter. "Speak to your friend, Eric. Make it quick."

"Arthur?" Eric said hesitantly. "…Is… is it really you?"

He was playing along. He couldn't hide the fear in his voice, but he at least knew to trust me. "Is he telling the truth? Did he or any of the Kanto Kings hurt you?"

"No… they've just been threatening me if you didn't surrender…"

"Assholes, right?" I asked, smirking.

Eric chuckled nervously. "You shouldn't do anything, Arthur. You sound safe. I can think of something."

"Don't," I warned. "Stay safe. That's the one thing you're going to do. I'll see you soon, Eric."

"Right… you too…"

Marcus quickly took Eric's place. "See? We've been treating him well. As I said, he's innocent. You're the monster."

"Right," I muttered. "I'm the monster. Where should this monster go?"

"Just go north from the police station. I'll send a group to rendezvous once I've seen that you've left."

"I'm getting a police escort," I warned him. "There'll be a dozen officers with me. They're going to protect me in case anything dangerous happens."

"Smart of them. Bet it took you a long time to convince them. Hours, even." That was it. I could hear the suspicion in his voice. He knew something was wrong. He shook off the suspicion and returned to his jovial voice. "Doesn't matter! So long as you've realized there's no other option!"

"We're leaving now," I said. "I just wanted to let you know."

"See you soon, Arthur," Marcus finished, the façade dropping for one last venomous remark. "My father will see you soon as well."

I hung up feeling uneasy. I stared at my watch as I said, "Marcus is suspicious. I think Chief Harmen's in trouble."

"Of course he's suspicious," Miles replied, unconvinced. "The Chief will be fine. Are you ready to move?"

I nodded. "A group of Kings will be meeting us on our trip."

"Weapons at the ready," Miles commanded, and the officers pulled out their side arms. "Eyes and ears open and watching. We will not be caught off guard. Let's move!"

The officers pushed open the front doors and marched outside. My Moemon surrounded me, and we followed. Little had changed outside; officers still guarded nearly every corner of the office building and the distant sounds of gunfire still echoed across the city. It was getting darker. It had been nearly a day since Donavan Tower fell and two days since Mayor Porter's death. It felt like so much longer.

We walked across the barricade and north through the alley. Officers moved to surround us, while Stacy leapt from building to building surveying our surroundings from above. We traveled fairly quickly and quietly in a straight path. The few times we stopped were to get updates from Stacy about nearby people, and only then did we alter our path.

We walked for twenty minutes before Stacy told us to stop. She'd seen a large group from the north and wanted to confirm, so we waited behind dumpsters in an abandoned alley while she perched on the rooftop above. She circled slowly to observe all directions before leaping down to us.

"The group is still traveling south," she advised. "That must be the rendezvous group." Then she pointed east. "Another group is approaching from the east. They're scattered across several alleys; I could see two dozen. I have no idea where they're going."

"Toward us," Miles muttered, cocking his pistol. "They aren't welcome."

Stacy gave me a lasting look, nodded almost imperceptibly, and then leapt into the air. She soared passed the building and into the sky, disappearing. I watched her leave, completely stunned, and looked to my Moemon for an explanation. However, they looked just as shocked, as Bailey had disappeared as well.

"Where did they-" I began, before one of the soldiers clamped a hand over my mouth and hushed me. I barely had time to process the action before a voice shouted from the alley over.

"We're here on behalf of Marcus! We saw you hide. We're only here for the Challenger."

The officer gave me a look before removing his hand from my mouth. I pushed his arm away and walked over to my Moemon, silently demanding an explanation. They simply looked at me guiltily before that same officer pulled me over to Miles. Miles gripped my shoulder and walked out of hiding.

"Here's Arthur," Miles shouted, one hand on me, one hand holding his pistol in the air.

Standing in the middle of the road were two dozen Kanto Kings, all of whom were holding Tommy Guns and waiting impatiently. The man in the lead, a young handsome man dressed in the nicest of suits, grinned at the sight of us.

"Well I'll be damned," he chuckled. "They roped you into babysitting, Miles?"

Miles huffed. "Andy… it hasn't been long enough."

Andy shrugged. "I've been good, you know. Haven't hurt anyone this whole time. I don't intend to start now; I just want the Challenger."

"I'll come with you," said Miles. "I'd like to escort the other Challenger out of Kanto Kings' territory."

Andy bit his lip. "I'd have to run it through with Marcus. I'm okay with it, because I know you're a good guy, but we've got our orders."

"Then ask Marcus. I've got time."

Andy thought for a second, and then he leaned to the side to look behind us. "Marcus said there'd be a dozen of you. Was that a lie, or are they planning an ambush?"

"They're behind us," answered Miles, noting Andy's suspicion. He waved his arm forward, and slowly the officers and my Moemon crept out from behind the dumpsters. At that, Andy aimed his gun at us, and his men immediately mirrored the motion.

"Hey," Andy warned. "Weapons away. No one's getting hurt tonight, so let's not risk it."

Miles looked behind and nodded, and he holstered his weapon. Several clicks behind us indicated that the other officers did the same. Andy nodded, looking slightly relieved.

"I'll just quickly ask Marcus, and then we can be on our way," he continued, pulling out his radio.

"Wait!" Christine shouted, stepping forward. I felt my heart race as I saw the weapons train on her.

Andy stared at her strangely. "Are you the Challenger's Moemon?" He guessed. Christine nodded, and Andy shook his head. "I know what you're going to ask, and Marcus won't approve. I'm not even going to bother him."

"But-" Christine whined, and I turned around sharply. I made sure there was no anger in my eyes. Only appreciation.

"Christine," I said calmly. "I'm doing this alone. I'm glad you came with me this far, but I said you're not risking your lives."

Rose touched Christine's arm and gently pulled her back to Olivia. I smiled at the trio. "Stacy and Bailey didn't abandon us. They'll be out there to protect me. I'll be fine." Their earlier zeal had diminished seeing the forces we faced; I was glad they didn't push the issue again. I understood and appreciated their desire to stand with me especially after everything we'd faced, but as I said many times: this was between me and Eric. This was something we had to finish.

I turned back to the army to see that Andy had finished his conversation. He looked at Miles apologetically. "I'm sorry, Miles. Marcus only wants the Challenger."

Miles nodded and released his grip on me. "Good luck, then Arthur. Tell Eric that we'll be waiting here."

"Keep my Moemon safe," I replied.

Andy extended his hand, smiling. "It's alright – Arthur, is it? – it'll be over soon."

I took a step toward the alley, and then heard a shout of "NOW!" from the east. I had a sudden terrible pit in my stomach, and my survival instincts took over. I dove back into the alley as the road was completely lit up with the spray of thousands of bullets. The entire army was hit with a barrage of bullets that cut and tore and dug into all of them.

The spray didn't even last a minute, and when it finally ended, the two dozen Kings lay dead on the road. I scrambled behind the dumpster and hid with the pile of officers who had all pulled out their weapons.

"What the fuck?" I whispered. "What was that?"

"That was a woman's scream," an officer whispered back.

"A woman?" I repeated. My mind went to one person who had the gall to carry out such an attack.

The officers held their breaths in absolute silence as we heard the approaching sound of footsteps crunching against the debris. A row of shadows filled the streets, stopping just before revealing themselves.

"I saw you, Challenger," a familiar female voice shouted. "Saw you too, Miles. We just got rid of the bastards who were threatening you. You should be welcome."

"You don't know what you just did, Karen!" Miles growled. "Get out of sight before we open fire on you!"

Karen laughed. "We saved your lives, and this is our thanks? We don't care about the police; this is between us and the bastards who killed my husband. We just got rid of twenty of them; I'd call this a good night."

"What are you doing?" I shouted. "Why'd you just do that?"

There was silence, and then Karen stepped into the alley. She smiled at the dumpster, knowing full well that we cowered behind it. "Because we're going to take back this city from the Kings, and we need your help."

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy

Eric:

Helen the Drowzee


	17. Chapter 16: Helen

The other Celadon Saviors joined their leader at the edge of the alley. A few gathered the weapons of the deceased, while the rest surrounded Karen with their weapons aimed at the dumpster. Karen stood with her gun at her side, fully confident in her men.

"The Saviors are gone," An officer shouted. "They died when Greg did!"

"Hey!" Karen shouted furiously. "Whoever just shouted that, you pray I don't recognize your voice! We just saved your asses! You don't deserve to disrespect us!"

"What do you want?" Miles asked. "The police don't take part in this war!"

"Clearly you were, considering you were being held at gunpoint."

"We were on official police business."

"Bullshit," Karen muttered. "Don't make us take the Kings' place. We don't want to hurt you; we don't care about the police."

"Then go away!" Another officer growled. "Let us leave!"

"We need the Challenger!"

At that, my Moemon huddled around me. "Why? I can't do anything for you!"

"Come out of hiding, and I'll tell you," answered Karen. "You could do it willingly, or we could pull you out. We're not going to hurt you; we need you."

I glanced at Miles, who shook his head. Then I looked at my Moemon, who shook their heads. This wasn't something I could escape; these people just slaughtered two dozen men. They'd kill all the police to get to me, and there'd be another giant preventable bloodbath.

"Fuck that," I muttered to myself, and I stood up with my arms in the air. I felt something grip my leg, but I managed to wrench myself out of its grip. I stepped out behind the dumpster, facing the army.

Karen took a step forward, and I took a step back. She paused and smirked. "What?" She demanded.

"Tell me why you need me," I said. "I won't go with you unless I do."

"Like you have a choice," Karen scoffed. But she relented. "We heard from the Kings we've killed that Marcus wants you to surrender yourself. He's had his entire army looking for you all day. You'll surrender yourself to him, and we'll kill him."

I blinked. I didn't believe she was serious. "I… I was surrendering to him… That's why we were talking to those men you murdered!"

Karen barely glanced back at the bodies on the ground. She seemed unimpressed. "Hm, then we're on the same page," she noted. "So then you have no reason not to come with us."

"Of course he does!" Miles growled. "There's no plan that will get you to Marcus. The Kings will never let you all waltz into their ranks simply to turn him in! They'd never believe you'd surrender to them, either."

"We'll never surrender," Karen stated, insulted. "We'll tell Marcus we have you hostage, and we'll tell him to come get you."

"And then Marcus will send his entire army directly to your location because he knows where Arthur is at all times," argued Miles. He was losing his composure; he shot up from behind the dumpster and glared at the army pointing weapons at him. "You'll all die."

"We'll never die," added Karen. "We'll overpower all of the Kings."

"If those are the only men you could scavenge from the wreckage of that tower, you're dead already," Miles threatened.

Karen stared at him thoughtfully. She tapped fingers on her gun as if deciding whether to shoot. Miles didn't waver; he didn't blink. Finally Karen nodded.

"We're weakened," she conceded. "We won't fall to the Kings. We'll fight to the last man." She pointed at Miles. "And what are you police doing besides cowering in your fortress while that bastard takes over the city? Delivering a Challenger into his hands?"

"We're on a mission," said Miles. "A mission which you ruined!"

"You know what Marcus is going to do to him. You're killing him." She paused, her fingers still tapping. "If I shot him, I'd be accomplishing the same thing. I'm giving him a chance to live."

"You don't know what we planned," I argued. "I wasn't going to die."

"Marcus would throw you off the roof before you executed your brilliant 'plan'. The Saviors are going to save this city by killing him before he kills anyone else."

"We were going to stop him," I said.

"You wouldn't do anything," Karen said, shaking her head. "Your plan would fail, you'd die, and this city would fall. Now Marcus has no choice but to come to us."

"He has plenty of choices," I argued, thinking of Eric. "He's not going to believe that I'd let you kidnap me!"

"Try him!" She held her hand out, and a Savior gave her a radio. She dialed a number and waited. After a moment, the static ended, and she spoke before anyone could speak. "Give me Marcus. The Saviors have your Challenger."

There was pause, and a few seconds later Marcus' voice came through. "What did you just say?"

Karen couldn't suppress her grin. "Marcus, it's great to hear you! Glad you're doing well!"

Another pause. "Karen… you didn't die in that tower."

"I wasn't in it. I was leading my men. Do you want to share a moment of silence for our family?"

"Yes." So Karen held the radio to her heart and closed her eyes. Nobody moved; we simply watched as she mourned for her husband. The moment passed, and she returned to her call. "I said the Saviors have your Challenger."

"Bullshit."

Karen held out the radio. I refused to move. She glared at me, pointing her gun at the radio, and then at me. I understood the threat, and although I hated that I had to do it, I shouted: "Marcus, Andy died! All of the Kings were killed! Slaught-"

Karen held her palm out to silence me. "Did you catch that?" She asked. She took the silence as an affirmation. "I learned that he was on his way to see you. So I'll change the terms of your arrangement. We'll hold your Challenger hostage, and you'll come get him."

More silence. Karen frowned as she continued, "I know you're upset, Marcus, but the Saviors are reasonable. We'll exchange his life for yours."

Then my watch rang. I jumped at the noise, and all eyes turned to me. I answered the call, but let the voice speak to me.

"Arthur?" Marcus' voice rang out. Karen sprinted over to me before I could react, and she grabbed my wrist.

"Did you not hear me the first time?" Karen demanded. "I have your damn Challenger!"

"Let go of my wrist," I seethed, trying to wrench it free. I could see that the Saviors were closing in on us. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see the police readying their weapons. Some had already trained on Karen.

"I'm speaking to Arthur privately," said Marcus calmly. "Don't speak, or Eric will die."

Karen looked at me in confusion as I wrenched myself free with all my strength. I was not going to risk it being an empty threat. I held the watch close to my mouth and took a few steps away.

"She's not going to speak," I whispered, trying to hold my panic. "What do you want?"

"So my men are dead?"

"Yes…"

"Then come alone. I'll send another, larger group. How many Saviors are there?" I hesitated. "Answer, or Eric-"

"Like twenty," I said quickly. "Fucking stop threatening Eric!"

"I've waited long enough for you to surrender. You decided to act with the police, and now you've recruited the Saviors."

"They ambushed us!" I pleaded. I knew he wouldn't believe me. "The police and Saviors are close to killing each other!"

"Come alone. If any Saviors or police follow you – and I will know – Eric will die. This is your last chance, Challenger." He hung up.

I stared at my watch. I was so scared, so utterly defeated. Even if I came alone, Chief Harmen would be infiltrating the Kings. If his plan failed, Eric would die. If I didn't manage to escape the police and the Saviors, Eric would die.

I slowly turned to Karen. She frowned; she heard. "Eric?" She repeated. "That boy you found in the Department Store."

"He's being held hostage," I explained. "If I don't turn myself in – alone – he'll die." I pointed to Miles. "That's why the police were escorting me! I was exchanging myself for Eric."

"That was a stupid plan," Karen stated. "You had no reason to believe Marcus would let that boy go once you turned yourself in. He may have been planning to kill two Challengers at once!"

"There would be no reason to do that, Karen," said Miles. "Marcus has nothing against the boy. All of his anger is focused on Arthur."

"Why do you care about him?" asked Karen. "He's not worth risking your life."

"Yes he is."

"You didn't risk your life traveling around the city to save him," countered Karen.

"Well, I am now!"

She leaned to look at my Moemon behind me. Unimpressed, she replied, "You couldn't even find your whole team; you won't find Eric."

I felt a sudden burning hatred for her. I pointed a threatening finger at her and replied darkly, "Watch it."

She didn't show remorse. "Don't do something stupid for no reason. Consider him dead already and move on."

Before I could argue, a savior walked up to us and held out a radio. "Karen, we stumbled upon some important chatter."

Karen snatched the radio and held it in front of us. A panicked voice shouted, "They're attacking! Oh shit – the Moemon! They're attack-" The shouting turned to static. A few seconds later, wind rushed past our faces as a low boom reached our ears.

"Wind came from the northeast," Karen deduced quickly, flickering through the radio channels. "Apostles are making their comeback."

She found a station. "That's one of Mary Beth's Moemon!" Another voice shouted, more in awe than panic. That quickly changed as it added, "Wait, it's charging something! That's a Shadow Ball! It's heading straight-"

Another explosion rumbled the ground beneath us. Karen looked up at the solder. "Anything else important I should be aware of? Any other attacks?"

The soldier shook his head. "If the Apostles are making a final push, they could be a good distraction."

"Absolutely. It couldn't have come at a perfect time. We'll wait for the Apostles to attack from the East, and we'll attack from the South. We'll stay out of their way until we have to." She turned to me. "And you, Challenger. I don't care about your mission. I care about what you can do for our cause."

"I do care about my mission," I stated, standing firm. She was right about one thing: The Mewtwo's Apostles pushing toward us meant one more distraction for the Kanto Kings. Chief Harmen's infiltration would be easier if they waited for the right moment. But everything else? Especially after that last remark, I couldn't work with her. "I don't give a flying fuck about your 'cause'."

She took a step closer, her expression darkening. "The cause you're thinking about died with Greg. Do you think I care about humans and Moemon and their place in society?" She paused, expecting an answer. I nodded slightly. "Our 'cause' is vengeance against Marcus, the man who sent out his entire army to bring you in and execute you. You're telling me you don't care about that? You don't want to kill this man?" I shook my head slightly. "Then why don't you join us?"

I opened my mouth, but she interrupted. "Fuck Eric. He's a dead man. If you do what Marcus tells you, you'll both be dead men. I'll tell you right now, if you stay with us, you'll get your vengeance."

"I don't want vengeance!" I said. "I want Eric safe! I want Marcus out of power so that I don't have to fear for my life, but that isn't what I care about. How many times do I have to say that the only reason I'm out here is to see Eric safe?"

Karen stared at me for a moment, and then she turned to her men. "Disarm the police and handcuff them. Leave them in the alley." She snatched my arm and pulled me to her.

"Men!" Miles shouted quickly, throwing his pistol to the ground and putting his arms in the air. "Lay down your weapons." The policemen hesitated, looking from each other to Miles to Karen, and then they followed. As the Saviors surrounded the officers and disarmed them, he looked at Karen. "No one gets hurt."

Karen nodded. "We're done talking. We want the Challenger. You can go back to your bunker if you want; we'll fight the real war."

"When this war is over, you will be prosecuted," Miles warned her. "All of you. Just walk away; there's no need to kidnap him."

"You're not going to touch him!" Christine shouted, running forward, claws bared. Karen waited for her to be within arms' reach, threw me backward, and then kicked her in the chest. Christine grunted pain, but Karen grabbed her hoodie and threw her head to the ground.

"Stop hurting her!" I screamed, trying to run forward but being held back by spare Saviors.

Karen stepped on Christine's hair and held the gun to her forehead. "Recall your Moemon. I'm not dealing with them."

"Let go of me!" I growled to the Saviors. They relented, and I pulled out the three balls and recalled them quickly. When they disappeared, the Saviors grabbed me.

Karen glared at me. "You're lucky she didn't hurt me. After all this time we wasted, I should've just done this from the beginning. I wanted you to accept my deal without fighting; I didn't expect you to be so insistent on saving you other Challenger friend."

"…Karen, I don't care about this fight. I only care about getting Eric and getting out. I've told you so many times!"

"I know," Karen replied, shaking her head. "It's annoying. Accept him as another loss in this war." She nodded forward. "Let's move."

So I was hauled away by the soldiers and followed closely by Karen. I tried to look behind at the police officers, but I couldn't see them. They were completely helpless, and once again I was on my own. Marcus wouldn't believe that I'd been kidnapped; he wanted me to come alone, and I couldn't escape. I could only hope Chief Harmen could complete his mission. Otherwise, Eric was dead.

* * *

We headed a few blocks east before moving North. Karen had ordered the soldiers to release me, and she walked beside me in the center of the small army. I despised everything about her; she'd sentenced Eric to death, and she hurt Christine. I couldn't see a way to escape, despite wanting nothing else. I was surrounded, and Karen wouldn't keep her eyes off me.

"Your Moemon – Christine, right? – nearly died for you," She muttered suddenly. I didn't even spare her a glance; I didn't want to hear what she was going to say. "You Challengers always have those Moemon. Every year we hear tales of Moemon sacrificing their lives so their trainers survive." A sad smile betrayed her lips. "She wasn't in danger. I wanted you to recall your Moemon so we'd have fewer loose ends."

"You hurt her," I spat.

"Barely," she grunted. "I'm the leader of these men for a good damn reason; I know when to use my strength. But that's not the point. I sympathize with you. I had Moemon, once. A team of three – a Kangaskhan, a Golem, and a Skuntank. I loved them, but then I met Greg. He despised Moemon, and he told me to choose him or them. I chose the love of my life, and my Moemon run free to this day, I hope."

She paused, gauging my reaction. I didn't care about her backstory, so she got nothing, but I took little pleasure in that small annoyance. "Do you know there's a bounty out for your head?"

"Of course I do."

"Then you know that if you went to Marcus, and he killed you, he'd take that bounty. Double for Eric. Plenty of witnesses, so he'd definitely get the money. And your Moemon… what would happen to them? Would you have released them all just before the end? Would you have taken them with you to the grave?"

My heart dropped at the very thought of them dying with me. Of course I would've released them. Before I opened my mouth, Karen answered for me: "You wouldn't have released them in time. You Challengers are so sentimental; you would've waited until the last moment, and it would've been too late. Your Moemon would die with you because you wouldn't want to think about it."

She held her arm up in the air, and at once the army stopped. She placed her hand on my shoulder, holding it firm despite me fighting. "This is my advice to you: sentimentality will get you and your Moemon killed. You can love them, but they can die at any time. Learn to move on; don't try to keep them alive if there's no point. That goes for you and your Challengers. Only one of you can win, if that. All the rest of your Moemon are going to die. The quicker you accept that, the quicker you'll do what it takes to win. Even if that means sacrificing one to save the rest."

As I processed her advice, particularly that last comment, she pointed in various directions. Groups of six broke off to our right, to our left, and behind us. She pointed at my wrist. "Call Marcus. Tell him we let you free."

"Why?"

"Don't ask. Tell him to send a lot of men, because you don't know what I'm planning."

The one statement that wouldn't be a lie. I grimaced as I called Eric. My heart dropped as I saw his name flash on the screen; it felt like it would be the final time I'd see that. I shook that feeling away; Chief Harmen would prevail.

After three rings, Marcus picked up. "What now, Arthur?"

"Karen let me go," I recited, trying to keep fear and concern in my voice. "She just told me to go after kidnapping me. I don't know what she's planning. I'm heading over to you, now, but I need whatever you can spare… I'm scared."

"You sound terrified," Marcus muttered, seemingly unconvinced. I couldn't tell what he was thinking; I wanted to elaborate on my portrayed fear, but I couldn't think of anything that wouldn't sound unnatural. "It's a trap. I know that; Karen wouldn't just let you go. I can't risk any of my men; the Apostles are attacking. You're on your own."

I hesitated. There was a calmness in his voice that I hated; it was completely unlike the other conversations we'd had. A cockiness that implied he'd outsmarted everyone and won.

"Wait…" I said. "What do you mean 'you're on your own?' I'm coming for Eric!"

"I mean I won't risk anymore of my men for you. The Celadon Saviors – and especially Karen – wouldn't simply let you go after capturing you. It's a trap, and I will not fall for it. Tell Karen that if she wishes to speak to me, she can do so on our terms."

Karen was eavesdropping, and she placed her hand over the watch and leaned close. "I'm going to kill that smug asshole," she growled into my ear.

I ripped my arm away, glaring at her. I quickly recomposed myself. "I've been alone for the past ten minutes. I can't see anyone around! Marcus, please, I'm scared and I just want to see Eric!" That last truth came surprisingly naturally.

"I never gave you a time limit because I understood how treacherous this warzone for a child," Marcus said. "Now I will: one hour or Eric d-" he paused. His muffled voice spoke to someone away from the watch. I held my own close to my hear trying to pick out any words. Suddenly, Marcus' voice screamed into the watch. "Did you believe I wouldn't find out what you're planning, you pathetic child? You must think you're intelligent, distracting me for so long!"

After shaking away the minor tinnitus I'd just experienced, I let those words sink in. What I was planning…? I gasped sharply. Chief Harmen! Was he just… did he…

"What do you mean?" I asked, trying to keep my voice steady and failing horribly. "I don't know what you're talking about!"

"You're a fucking awful liar!" Marcus growled. He kicked something heavy. "Damn you! Damn you and your Moemon! More of my men! How many of my men do you think I'll let you get away with murdering?"

Now I was lost. "What are you talking about?" I asked. "My Moemon are with me-"

"Don't you fucking lie to me! My men saw your Banette! Couldn't have been Sister Belle; she's far away with the other Apostles. I saw your Banette cross over the front lines with you! She was with another bird Moemon flying away after MURDERING MY GOD DAMN MEN!"

Bailey and Stacy… I wanted to groan in disgust. What did they just do? "I told you my Moemon are all with me! Karen wouldn't let me keep them out, so I recalled them! Whatever you're talking abo-"

"Don't lie to me! You're awful at it! You know why I know it was your Moemon? Because they took Eric's Moemon! No one else would risk anything for a Drowzee!"

It took a moment, and then everything clicked. Bailey and Stacy were discussing the rescue at the police station. They overheard Eric mentioning Helen had been moved to the roof. The two of them ran off and rescued her! But they were seen, and Marcus knew exactly why they did it.

"What, did you believe I'd trade Eric for his Moemon?" Marcus demanded. He laughed mockingly. "What other reason would you have for saving her? She's nothing!"

Someone from behind pointed in the sky and shouted, "Karen, something from above!"

I looked up, squinting, seeing small objects above approaching quickly. Already…? Karen was still eavesdropping, and she had enough sense to shout, "Do not attack them! They're Arthur's Moemon."

She shouted loud enough that even the soldiers in hiding could hear. The observant Savior argued, "but they might attack us to rescue him!"

Karen shook her head. "That's an order!"

So the men simply watched as Bailey and Stacy – holding Helen underneath her – dropped next to us. Helen tumbled forward, sobbing from confusion and fear. Her eyes were bloodshot and her face was red.

I ran over to Stacy and Bailey and pulled them both in for a hug. "Good work, girls," I said.

"I heard that!" Marcus' voice rang out. "So, I was right. You sent your Moemon to kill my men to rescue that little girl? I'm sick of your disobedience. You shouldn't have escaped; you shouldn't have run; you shouldn't have killed my father! I'm tired of waiting for you! You're never going to rescue your friend!"

"I'm going over as soon as I can!" I shouted, thinking quickly. "I just wanted to make sure that Helen was safe!"

There was a pause, and then Marcus continued with that disturbing calmness. "Congratulations, you've sacrificed the king to save the pawn."

"What are you talking about?" I asked. I knew exactly what that meant. "Marcus, I'm coming to you right now!"

"Why? You'll just be rescuing a corpse."

"Eric!" I shouted. I couldn't see anything. I could only imagine Marcus holding a gun to Eric's temple and pulling the… "Eric! Talk to me! What's happening over there!"

"Arthur?" Eric's voice groaned in pain. That heavy thing Marcus kicked must've been him. "Arthur, he's getting a gun!"

Oh shit. Oh fuck. "Okay! Okay, Marcus, stay calm! We need to talk about this! I'm sorry I did that! I'm sorry I ran! I was scared, alright! I just wanted to make sure-"

"Shut up." That calm demand pierced through my pleading. Marcus sighed tiredly. "His blood is on your hands."

"Eric!" Time stood still. Marcus was inconvincible. Eric was going to die. I couldn't rescue in time. I couldn't rely on Chief Harmen. I couldn't rely on some miracle. I got my friend killed.

I looked at Helen. Eric's last Moemon. A last hope crossed my mind. Of all words, Karen's advice rang true. Sacrifice one to save the rest. Eric's last Moemon was his last connection to this world. Sever it… and Eric's free…

"Bailey," I commanded, pointing at Helen. I refused to think emotionally about this; this was to save Eric. "Kill her!"

"What?" Bailey demanded, curiously.

"Now!" Shadow ball her!" I shouted. "Eric, I challenge you to one more Moemon battle!"

"Arthur, wait, what are you doing?" Eric pleaded. "Arthur, he's going to kill me!"

Bailey, still looking at me confused, charged a Shadow Ball. Stacy ran up to me, glaring, wanting to demand what I thought I was doing. Karen and the other Saviors had pulled back, giving us space. Eric still pleaded, begging me for help. Marcus hadn't pulled the trigger, no doubt confused. Helen sobbed. I wanted to cry, but I held firm.

"Now!" I commanded. "Kill Helen!"

Bailey fired her blast at the sobbing, kneeling Moemon. The dark purple ball swallowed Helen and crashed against the brick wall with a deafening explosion. Rocks and bricks flew in all direction as we shielded ourselves from the flying debris. The Shadow Ball disappeared into nothing, leaving a giant empty crater. Helen had disappeared.

My watch flashed red, displaying Eric's name in bright letters. I heard Marcus growl in confusion, and a bullet was fired. "Eric?"

"Arthur…" Eric's voice, weak yet somehow melancholic rang clearly through the watch. "Everything's glowing white…"

It worked. That voice wasn't the voice of a dying man; it was the voice of a man disappearing from this world. "Eric, I'll explain when we get back. I saved you!"

There wasn't a response. The connection died, and my watch's screen blackened. He was saved. I did it.

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy


	18. Chapter 17: Karen

I dropped to my knees feeling an entire weight lift off me. I saved Eric… I couldn't believe it. I saved him! I was a hero! I almost smiled, almost laughed out of pure joy, but the moment my lips started crawling upward I felt a sharp slap across my face.

"Don't you dare smile about this!" Stacy growled. I blinked, staring at the wall and feeling the sting on my cheek. "You don't know you saved him! For all we know, you killed Helen for nothing!"

I slowly turned back to my Moemon. I'd never seen her so enraged; the fire in her eyes paled to the intensity of the venom in her glare. "Stacy," I said slowly, carefully. "You heard the voice as clearly as I did. You heard exactly what I heard! We saved him!"

"And what about Helen? Arthur, we risked our lives to save her!" Stacy argued, pointing at the crater that once was a Moemon. "And just like that, you killed her!"

"To save Eric!"

"So one life is more important than another?"

"No!" I said immediately. "But-"

"Eric was going to die, and Helen was safe," Stacy interrupted. "Yet you killed Helen and didn't let Eric die. And we will never know if he lived or died, because he's gone from this world!"

"Yes!" I said, clutching onto that last point. "Stacy, we're Challengers. We're not part of this world! We shouldn't die here! Nothing that happened to Eric was his fault! He shouldn't have to suffer and – fuck, die! – because of it!"

"It wasn't Helen's fault, either! She was the one who suffered!"

"You're right. It wasn't. It's mine. I put everyone into this situation!"

"Don't put the blame on yourself, either," Stacy said sternly. "You made the final decision; you killed Helen. She's dead because of you. Everything else is because of Marcus."

I opened my mouth to argue, but she thrusted her finger at my face, pointing directly between my eyes. "Arthur, out of understanding for this entire situation, I'll refrain from pushing the point. But we – all of us – will talk about this once we're safe."

I nodded. That was fair. I felt so much pain and regret from my decision that just thinking about it enough to argue with Stacy send pangs through my body. I could hear it in my voice: I was close to tears and just barely keeping it below the surface. Stacy could sense it too; we knew I would've started crying if I said anymore.

Stacy sighed, calming down quickly, and placed her hand on my shoulder. Softly. "If nothing else, thank you for not commanding me to make the kill."

"You wouldn't have handled it," I said quietly, swallowing the pain. "I couldn't let you go through more pain."

Bailey stepped forward, having simply watched us argue back and forth. "I don't care about the kill. I care about why we bothered if she was just going to die anyway. Why didn't we just drop her off the roof and be done with it?"

"Because we didn't know she would die," Stacy replied calmly.

"Then why save her?"

"We thought we were helping."

Karen finally stepped forward now that our argument had concluded. She looked at Bailey. "You two saving that Moemon is what sent Marcus over the edge. He was giving Arthur a time limit to come, but his men saw you two escaping."

Bailey tilted her head, confused. "So you're blaming us?" She demanded.

"I pissed Marcus off too many times," I muttered. "It would've happened eventually."

"You escalated it," said Karen simply. "Marcus was fine until he heard what you did."

The two of them glanced at each other. Neither would show it, but there was guilt in their eyes as well. I'd never say it, but I wished they hadn't run off and risked their lives to save Helen. Yes, in a way it was their fault, but they didn't know. They knew Chief Harmen had his own plan; they should've trusted his competence and waited.

"It's done," I stated, distracting them. "Eric's gone, and Helen's gone. Marcus doesn't have anyone hostage." I turned to Karen. "Let us go; we have no reason to stay in this city anymore."

Karen shook her head. "Sorry, Arthur, but you're not done yet. Marcus still wants you, and I'm delivering." She nodded at my Moemon. "Recall them."

I hesitated, looking around. Six men watched us closely, and another eighteen waited in the shadows. We couldn't escape. It wasn't fair to simply send Stacy and Bailey into their balls to wallow in guilt after partially blaming them for Helen's death, but I had no choice. Karen was still in control.

"I'm sorry," I said. Stacy nodded, but Bailey simply stared as I recalled both of them. I turned back to Karen. "I have all of my Moemon, by the way. So fuck you for saying I didn't."

Karen simply smirked. "Arthur, I'll forgive you for insulting me so many times. You earned my respect, commanding something like that. You barely even hesitated. You clearly listened to me."

"I wish I hadn't," I muttered.

My watch ringed suddenly, making me jump. I looked at the screen. Mercifully it wasn't Eric, somehow; mercilessly, it was Hannah. All the way in Pewter wondering why her screen just flashed red; wondering why I'd just eliminated him. I ignored it, looking back up at Karen. Her face gave away that she knew what I was ignoring.

"What is the plan?" I asked, grimacing.

"Well, Marcus will be pissed if he couldn't kill his hostage," she reasoned. "And without a Challenger's watch, he'll have no idea where you are. He'll want to send all his men out your last known location to find you, but he'll also have the Apostles making a push toward him. A reasonable man would keep his army close to protect his home." She paused, smirking knowingly. "But we both know Marcus is beyond reason. He'll come after you, which means we can't stay here."

She whistled sharply, letting her men know to regroup. Once all of the Saviors were accounted for, she gave them a brief summary: "Eric's gone, so Marcus doesn't know where our Challenger friend is. We can't communicate with him, but he has no leverage. He'll be sending all of his Kings here, so we're moving South."

"We're not going to Marcus himself?" asked a Savior.

"It'd be better to wait. We know the Apostles are coming for a distraction, so when the Apostles have hit, and the Kings are scattered, we'll strike." She pointed at the nearest Savior. "Scout North." They chose an unused radio frequency for private communication. "Call us when the Apostles are near." The Savior nodded and ran off. "The rest of us will return to base to recover."

* * *

So we marched South. Along the way, I got some more calls from the other Challengers. Quinton called twice; Garrett and Max once each; Hannah five times. I ignored them all. I didn't want to talk to them. I couldn't. I didn't know if they'd understand, but I just didn't want to relive those events. Even thinking about them reopened the wounds.

Then there was Stacy. God was I going to hate that talk. I'd seen her furious too many times in the past few hours. But that face contorted into pure rage was the worst I'd ever seen her. I still felt the sting and still heard the words, but nothing compared to the shame of seeing that face and knowing that I deserved every bit of it.

Eric was safe back at home. He'll hate me when this was all over, but he'll hear that I saved his life and understand. I hoped that was the case; I'd hate to see him again and only experience the hatred all over again. I told myself he was safe to keep the fear of uncertainty away. I needed that solace to convince me that I hadn't make an awful mistake.

As we walked, the Saviors listened in to the Kings' radio conversations. We wouldn't have to wait long before the Saviors attacked; the Apostles were pushing hard through the Kings' territory. According to the reports, the Apostles had already reached the ruins of Donavan Tower and were rapidly moving west. Mary Beth's Moemon led the charge forward; their psychic abilities eviscerating anyone before them.

We stopped in front of a small inconspicuous building. The façade was shabby and worn down. Its windows were smashed and its paint had faded to nothing. The lead men pushed the door open and let it swing loosely on its single hinge before slamming into the wall behind. Then they stepped over the misshapen door frame and entered the building.

The rest of us followed, ignoring the stench of decay that immediately wafted from the opened seal of neglect. The inside looked just as abused as the outside: the walls were spray painted with a wide assortment of crude messages and anonymous insults, enough steps had been lost that there was no feasible way to climb to the second floor, and what little furniture remained looked rotten, stained, and moist.

"Welcome home," a soldier muttered grimly. A nearby soldier flipped the light switch and chuckled to himself when nothing happened.

"How the city treats its Saviors," another added, sitting on a small wooden chair that creaked and sagged under the weight.

"Why here?" I asked. I hadn't said a word since that incident; I'd been too lost in my own thoughts. The terrible state of the Saviors' safehouse distracted me enough to inquire. "Of all the abandoned houses in the city…"

"We know it's safe," answered Karen. "It's been under Donavan protection for decades. Greg's family home." She noticed my eyes widen, and she clarified. "There's a reason it's like this: Greg hated his family. The moment his parents died, he burned everything that reminded him of them and moved to his tower. You won't find a single memento from his past."

"How do you know it's safe if it's abandoned?" I asked.

She pointed at the corner of the ceiling. A single shine indicated something metallic hidden. "Cameras installed in every room. Motion sensors would warn the top floor if anything large crawled across the floor. If the tower wasn't gone, I'd be getting a call from Greg right now to check out the intruders." She paused, smiling sadly at the thought. "Nothing's been in since the war began. We'll be safe here until we're ready to attack."

She motioned to a small door hidden under a coat of dust. Without a doorknob to grab, a Savior slid his fingers into the tiny crack and pulled. After a crack of wood, the door gave way, revealing a small cubby filled with cans of food. He pulled a can out, shook it a bit, smiled, and tossed it to Karen. She caught it deftly, looked at the label, and smiled greedily.

"Is this where you went after… the tower fell?" I asked hesitantly as she pulled out a small knife and stabbed the top.

"I went to the tower ruins," she explained emotionlessly, distracting herself with her peaches. "I found Greg under a pile of rubble. Found the other two leaders nearby. When I tried to dig him out, the Kings came to clean up the mess. Some of these men pulled me away."

She paused, sighing and setting the peaches aside. "I went to the casino for the rest, told the civilians to get out of the city before the Kings came and collected the rest of my men. The Apostles found us as we were escorting the civilians to safety. They let us go east, but when the civilians were safe and we returned to the casino, the Kings had already reached us. We fought our way out and ran south, then we decided to take the fight to the Kings. Ambushed a few groups, learned about Marcus' obsession with you, and found out you were at the police station. We camped out until we learned you were leaving, and then found you."

"Of course you were stalking me," I muttered. "I knew the timing was too good."

Karen shrugged unabashedly. "Is that the only part that you care about?"

"The part that brought us here? Pretty much," I answered. "You found Mary Beth, Kevin, and Greg – all dead. Then you got some civilians out of the city and got chased away. I'm not sure what else you want me to care about?"

She glared. "You knew all three; you don't care that they're gone?"

"They fell from the top floor of a giant tower," I replied. "I accepted their deaths days ago." A soldier handed me an opened can of beans and a spoon. I thanked him and distracted myself with food, intentionally ignoring Karen's piercing stare. I had no idea what she wanted out of me; she told me nothing I couldn't have guessed myself if I even cared.

"Marcus seemed insistent that you played a part in the bombs," Karen stated.

That got my attention. I set the can aside and stared at her intently. "Karen, you were with me the entire time; you know I didn't have anything to do with that."

"I'm wondering why you don't seem to care that Greg and the others are dead."

"Of course I care that they're dead! I liked Mary Beth and Kevin for the little time I knew them! Hell, I've been chased around the fucking city because they died! But am I supposed to cry just because you mentioned their names? I never got attached to them! Like I said, they died two days ago, and I've been pretty fucking distracted since then."

"You didn't like Greg."

I snorted amusedly. "Is that the only part you care about?" I recited, mimicking her tone as best as I could. "No, I didn't like Greg. He was haughty, pretentious, and bigoted. I was glad when I left that tower; I couldn't stand being in the same room with him."

She stared curiously at my defiance, tapping her fingers on the tin can. After a moment, she spoke, "Greg was the best man I've ever known. Never insult his name or his memory again, or I will shoot you." The iciness of her tone established her sincerity.

"Fine," I said simply. I hadn't planned on it if she hadn't brought the subject up. "I don't know why you're focusing on this."

She stared silently at me. After a moment, I decided to drop the discussion and return to my awful cold food. I couldn't get a read on her; I could tell she was trying to drop her hard, tough, cold-hearted façade. She couldn't, and her inability to talk about her feelings just made things awkward.

It certainly didn't help that I didn't care about her feelings. In my mind, she played a significant part in Helen's death. If she hadn't intercepted Andy and the Kings, I would have been on my way to Marcus with Chief Harmen as backup.

Finally, after I'd finished my paltry meal and set it aside, Karen spoke again. The iciness was gone, and there was a slight softness in her eyes that took a significant effort to maintain. "The other Challengers were calling you, right? Why don't you call them back?"

It was my turn to stare. I debated telling the truth, if only to hide it from myself as well. But she was sincere with me, so I felt obliged to do the same. "Because I'm scared what they'll say."

"What could they say? They don't know."

"Exactly. They don't. The only reason I was here and the other Challengers are back in Vermilion is because I attacked Eric and killed most of his Moemon. I was running from them because they were planning to attack me. And now, just a few days later, they all find out that – after saying that I was going to save him – I attacked him again and eliminated him."

I paused, flipping through my watch's applications and finding the list of fallen Challengers. It started at the bottom and showed only four names at a time, and it scrolled slow to give me a good reminder of which challengers fell. Jacob… Garang… Maggie… Nick… Luke…

I held the watch up so that she could look. The first screen showed his team at the time of defeat – showing only Helen. "Eric eliminated on day 31 due to-" I tapped again, and the screen flipped to the eliminator. There, my name and my team flashed. "-me. Because I challenged him to a Moemon battle and killed his Moemon."

She glanced from the screen to me, still not understanding. "They believe I've had a grudge against Eric for weeks, and all they know is that I finished the job. They were furious at me for attacking him once. How do you think they're going to react now?"

"How should I know?" Karen retorted. "It sounds like you're worrying about something petty and ridiculous."

"They were planning on attacking me before I left!" I argued. "I'm scared they're still going to attack me!"

"Then ignoring them is supposed to help?"

"It's not a problem I want to deal with right now!"

"So you don't want to see the consequences of your actions? Welcome to life, where that shit happens whether you want it to or not."

"Don't lecture me," I seethed. "You're the one who asked. I didn't want to tell you. And I'm not going to talk to them."

Karen's disappointed stare pierced through me. I turned away, facing the wall. I hated being judged by her. "You already listened to me once before. What's another time going to hurt? Think about what they're going through. You Challengers are close, so they all probably cared about Eric. Now he's gone, and they don't know anything. They probably just want answers."

"They're going to be furious," I muttered.

"They're probably going to be mad no matter what," Karen shrugged. "Might as well give them some solace."

Karen got up and moved over to the group of soldiers gathered around a radio, leaving me to wallow. Fuck… she was right… I was furious that she had a point. I just didn't want to open that wound. I didn't want the others to tell me that I made a mistake or that I was an awful person or that they'd come after me for what I did to…

I punched the floor, ignoring the side glances I got. "Fuck you, Karen," I whispered. "Fuck you for making me do this."

I moved my wrist up to my knee and tapped the phone app. So few names left… Just twelve others. I didn't know who to call. Quinton could tell the others… Hannah called me six times already… The others were grouped together so I could call them at once.

Somehow, the universe didn't want me to decide. As I readied my finger to make the dreaded call, Hannah's name flashed on the screen. I didn't even wait for the first ring to finish before I answered.

"Oh my god!" Hannah's voice cried from the watch. I took one glance behind me and moved into the hallway away from the others. "Arthur! What happened? I've been trying to call you for so long! Are you okay? What happened to Eric?"

There wasn't anger in her voice. Just distress and fear. I didn't know whether that was better or worse than rage. I answered strangely calmly, "I'm okay. Eric was being held at gunpoint, and he was going to be shot-"

"Oh my god…" Hannah whispered.

"-and his Moemon was with me. I couldn't save him; Marcus wouldn't listen to reason. So I… I challenged Eric to a Moemon battle and beat his Moemon… He disappeared before he was hurt, I'm sure. I saved him."

"You're sure?"

"I'm sure," I confirmed more firmly. I couldn't let that fact be in doubt. "Hannah, I didn't know what else to do…"

"Arthur, you sound awful. Are you okay? Have you told the others? They told me you weren't answering them either!"

"I'm fine for now," I lied. "Just… composing myself. I'm going to tell the others."

"They won't be mad at you," Hannah reassured me. "They'll understand."

"Yeah… bye Hannah…"

"Bye…"

I hung up. The pit in my stomach remained, but I felt slightly better that she was worried about me. I just had to make that same call eleven more times.

Quinton was next, and he completely understood. He listened quietly as I explained, and he contemplated carefully before responding.

"Don't think too much about it," he assured me. "Just get yourself to safety so we can talk in person. Do you want me to tell the others?"

"No, I'll tell them. I have to."

"Good luck, then."

It was perfect. No judgment and no false reassurances. I decided Sam would be the one from Vermillion City who I called. He was Eric's closest friend and the least likely to forgive me.

When he picked up, he sounded like he was trying to keep from exploding out of anger. "You finally called…"

"Are the others with you?" I asked, keeping my own voice level. "Could you gather them, please?"

"They're all here in the Center," Sam replied. "All of us are watching the news. Not like there's anything we can see; they aren't allowing helicopters to fly over the city."

I hadn't noticed the lack of news helicopters. I did find it strange, but I set that information aside. "Then I need to explain myself."

"Yeah," Sam demanded. "You do. So talk." I heard a distant voice say Sam's name sharply.

So I explained what I could. Marcus kidnapped Eric, and I've been trying the past few days to rescue him. When there was nothing else I could do, and I was left with no way to save him, I made the choice. Helen was there, and Eric was not. I chose Eric.

When I finished explaining, I heard a sharp tap on the wall behind me. I turned and saw a Savior tapping his own wrist. We were moving soon. I nodded and held up a finger, keeping the watch close to my ear. Nobody had reacted.

"Guys?" I asked. "Hello?"

"We're here," Sam muttered. "…Sorry."

"Sorry?" I repeated, confused.

"Sorry you had to go through that. You had no other choice."

"I thought of everything, man. I really tried. I couldn't do it."

"He's safe?" Max's distant voice asked for assurance. "Right, Arthur, he's safe?"

"Yeah, Max, he's back at home. Or wherever we are. Marcus didn't shoot him."

"That's enough," said Max. "Arthur, you need to get out. We're coming to Celadon City once it's safe. Are you going to stay or leave?"

I looked at the Savior, who had no more patience. "I'll find out. Thanks for forgiving me, Max. I hope the rest of you can. I need to go, though, so I'll hopefully talk to you later."

"Wait-" Sam's voice called out, but I had already tapped the screen. That was it. I did what Karen wanted; I told them. It was up to them to forgive me or condemn me. The pit in my stomach wouldn't go away. I still had to deal with the worst discussion: the one with my own Moemon. Theirs was the condemnation I wouldn't be able to bear.

The Savior led me out the door, where everyone else was waiting. Karen handed me a radio. "Keep that in case we separate. I don't care what you think of me; I don't want you getting lost or injured. Stay with me, and I'll protect you."

"Until you need to use me," I muttered.

"I'm only using you if I need to use you. If I don't, then you get the best seat to watch Marcus' death." She smiled and whistled sharply. "Saviors, let's move out! The Kings await!"

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy


	19. Chapter 18: Marcus

Marcus had sent out numerous scouting groups toward the crater, just as Karen had predicted. But as the Apostles pushed their way westward and move deeper into Kings' territory, Marcus had sent the scouting groups north to pincer. However, whatever strength the Moemon had been withholding was far too much for the scattered army, and they were fighting off wave after wave of troops.

Most of the Kanto Kings army was north, so we'd have a clear path until just outside the Kings' base. Karen decided that they would wait until the Apostles' army was close enough for the Kings to panic. Then we'd sneak into the Department Store.

I didn't know where Chief Harmen was, what he was doing, if he was able to succeed, or if he was even continuing the plan. I couldn't depend on him. Assistant Chief Miles was likely still handcuffed to his officers. I couldn't depend on him. Karen wouldn't let me send out my Moemon. Four Eyes had been gone for ages. The Sisters were on the other side of the city. I couldn't depend on anyone to rescue me. I was forced along with the Saviors, completely dependent on their ability to maneuver in enemy territory.

We moved quickly and quietly. Karen sent out individual Saviors ahead of us to scout. We'd only wait a few minutes before moving with or without their report. Thankfully, most of the territory had been abandoned. As we moved closer and closer to the Department Store, we stopped longer and longer to wait for patrols to pass. They chose not to ambush anyone, conserving ammunition and maintaining stealth.

We reached the outskirts of the Kings' base nearly an hour after the call. Thankfully, nobody had called me back. The other Challengers understood that I needed privacy. During the hour, Marcus sounded the call to retreat and regroup at the Department Store, so we noticed a large number of soldiers in the multiple block diameter of the base.

The Saviors refused to change clothes. They'd remain red until they died; they wouldn't change into green despite the advantage of stealth. I was still wearing my green clothes, but my description had no doubt been given to every soldier in the area, and they'd notice a teenager amongst them immediately. There was no way we would be able to sneak into this incredibly crowded base unnoticed; we'd stand out immediately.

We stopped at the doorway of an abandoned apartment building. The Saviors quickly picked the lock and crept inside, shutting the door behind us. We stood in a small lobby that led only to a staircase. When the door closed, the radios were turned on, and we all gathered around them. The numerous radios were all set to different channels, and each channel revealed conversations about the Apostles' progress.

The first voice caught my attention because of the calm in the tone. While the others shouted over their communications, this voice spoke as if it was a casual conversation. "We've lost the casino." A voice announced. "We fought as long as we could, but the Apostles took it over."

"The casino?" A voice responded. "They're passed the tower! How did you last so long in the casino?"

There wasn't a response. Just static. I turned my attention to another nearby radio.

"Should we sound the retreat? If the bulk of our army couldn't beat the Apostles, how can we?" A young voice asked, terrified. "I want to live!"

"We're not running!" A more confident, older voice barked. "This is the Apostles' final push while we have men and resources to spare. If we stop them here, then we'll win this war!"

"Y-yes sir!" The younger voice replied, feigning confidence.

But it was the third conversation that got the attention of most of the Saviors. Most of the radios had been tuned to this frequency, so the conversation echoed throughout the room.

"They've reached Thirteenth Street!" A panicked voice shouted. "The Moemon are killing us al-" The voice turned to static, and we felt the building shake as the rumble of an explosion reached us.

"Good timing," A Savior noted, impressed. "They're well into the territory."

"If they keep going at this pace, we have maybe a half-hour," another added.

Karen pointed up. "Get to the roof. It should give you enough of a vantage point."

The Savior nodded and sprinted up the staircase. The rest of us turned back to the radio. Marcus' furious voice erupted immediately.

"How the fuck are they pushing against us? Where are they getting all of these people? Hundreds? Is that what you said?"

"Yes, Marcus," another voice popped up. "A rough estimate of at least three hundred. It's as if their numbers haven't been hit at all since this war started."

"Bullshit," Karen muttered. "That King is talking out of his ass; we killed so many Apostles. They can't have that many still fighting."

"Moemon are probably just using their powers on him," suggested a Savior.

"Karen?" Another voice asked over the radio sitting in Karen's pocked. "The Apostles are approaching the Department Building."

"Repeat yourself," Karen barked into the radio. Her voice stayed level, but her eyes betrayed her incredulity. "Already?"

"Yes, Karen… I don't believe it either. But I see dozens… hundreds… a goddamn sea of blue just a few blocks away."

"How many blocks away?" asked Karen. "Thirteenth is just a few blocks away."

"The front of the army is five blocks away."

"They're already at fifteenth?" the Savior beside me wondered.

As if to confirm the Savior's suspicions, Marcus' voice shouted over another radio: "How are they already at fifteenth? Are my men even fighting or are they just running?"

"Shut off that radio," Karen commanded, and immediately there was silence. She looked down at her own hand and said, "Get down here. We're leaving." She looked up at us. There was genuine fear in her eyes. "What happened to those Apostles? I never pegged them for actual fighters."

"They gave us a good fight."

"We were fighting them with half our army," Karen countered. "Given the full might of the Saviors, we would've crushed them. They shouldn't be pushing so quickly… there's something horribly wrong."

"Should we even bother? Sounds like they'll take care of Marcus."

"Marcus… he might run. I'm not giving him that chance." She placed her hand against the door. "Stay low. If the Apostles are close, the Kings will be focused north. We should have an easy journey into the Department Store." She pulled her weapon close to her chest. "Saviors: Move out!"

She threw open the door and leapt off the porch. The Saviors pushed me forward and helped me up as I stumbled, and we all sprinted across the empty street.

The base encompassed a giant three-by-three block square, and there were several entrances through the various alleyways and streets. We chose to go westward just south until we were in front of the Department Store. All we had to do was travel two blocks north, and we'd be inside.

We came up a darkened alley, crouching against the wall. We could hear the commotion inside; crowds of voices barked panicked orders at each other, and stampedes of soldiers stormed toward the Apostles. Nobody paid our dark alley any mind; we were invisible. Despite this, Karen held us just outside the lights that illuminated the base.

Nobody spoke, and nobody moved. It was unnecessary, considering we couldn't hear ourselves over the cacophony inside the base, but we wouldn't allow anyone to even sense that we were waiting. The explosions grew nearer and nearer, and with each one the base screamed in fear. Finally, we heard a collective shout.

"They're here! The Apostles are here!"

Karen sprinted forward, and without hesitation the rest of the Saviors followed her. They packed tightly around me, forcing me to keep in step. I couldn't slip away. All I could do was watch as we all ran into the direct center of the base.

It was chaos. A blur of green moved in all directions, mostly toward the northeast. Pockets of blue and red mixed amongst them as the Department Store civilians sprinted out to escape. People screamed all around us, but nobody shouted that they saw Karen or a Savior or me. We were caught in the ocean of color, a few unimportant bodies invisible to the world. We pushed our way through the crowd toward the giant building that stood in the center of the base.

We made it. Karen leapt up the steps and pushed past the front doors as the rest of us struggled to keep up. She moved with unnatural ferocity like an animal driven solely by ravenous hunger. The small crowd of civilians huddling in the center of the first floor was nothing to her; she maneuvered her way around them all without any hesitation and reached the stairs before any of us had even entered the building.

The civilians, seeing a large group of gun-wielding men and women barging into the building, panicked. A few in red recognized us and cheered; a few in green recognized us and screamed. Their noise caused the other oblivious citizens to panic, screaming and shouting and scattering. We moved through them, running up to the first floor.

As we climbed up the steps, we heard gunfire from above. The Saviors hurriedly sprinted, overtaking me in their zeal to rescue their leader. Soon all of them had rushed past me, but I barely even noticed; I was running on pure adrenaline. I was struggling to keep up with them, and I gave absolutely no thought to my survival. It didn't occur to me that I didn't have to stay with them, and this was my chance to escape.

I wanted to see Karen murder Marcus. I needed to see him dead for all he'd done.

Gunfire continued several floors up as I struggled past the second. I started to see the carnage left behind. Bodies of Kings sprawled along the floor and against walls, and blood dripping up the steps. On the fourth, I passed the first man in red near an overturned bench. On the fifth, I stepped over a King and two Saviors at the bottom of the steps.

I didn't know how they were pushing forward so quickly despite having to fight so many soldiers. It felt like I'd only been separated for a few seconds, yet I could hear gunfire three and four and five floors above. I couldn't count how many bodies I saw. We'd caught the Kings completely off guard, but the Kings had numerous bodyguards protecting their leader. As I pushed upward, I saw more and more fallen Saviors.

At the hospital, I stopped. There were far more wounded being cared for than when I'd last been there. There were fewer nurses, however, and the doctors who weren't protecting patients were frozen in fear at the sight of me.

"You!" An old man gasped. "You're the boy who killed Kevin!"

"That other boy turned into an angel!" A young woman cried. "He turned into an angel and flew into heaven! It was glorious!"

I looked around the room. It seemed like there hadn't been any fighting on this floor. However, I could see a bullet hole on a nearby wall. There was no blood near the area. I almost sighed in relief knowing for a fact that I'd saved Eric in time. But there was no time. More and more patients noticed I was here, and they still remembered Marcus dragging me away and accusing me of murder. They started to rise, so I couldn't linger; I ran up the stairs to step over more death.

They were still fighting above me, and the gunfire was much closer now. Three more Saviors fell to twelve Kings. More blood. The bodyguards were retreating up the building, but they were holding their own. They had time to build the battleground on this floor, and several benches and overturned trash cans had been placed to use as choke points and cover.

However, all their efforts had been spent on the ninth floor; the tenth and eleventh were clean and abandoned. As I climbed to the twelfth, I slowed my pace; there was still a war on the floor above. I could hear the orders and the screaming now. On this floor, however, people were still dying. A Savior groaned by the stairs, holding his bleeding chest. Across the floor, a King clutched to his neck as blood pooled from it. His breath grew weaker and weaker, and as he saw me enter the room he tried to aim his pistol at me. I didn't notice in time to react, and I only stared as he lost his grip and collapsed, dying just in time.

There were several others lying scattered behind cover around the room: many Kings and even more Saviors. I crept across the room, scanning the bodies for signs of life so that I wouldn't have to be that lucky. One King caught my eye: a young man I'd seen several times before. I could barely place the face, but I remembered seeing him recently.

Then it hit me. He was a police officer I'd seen gathered around a computer in the station. He was disguised as a King. I paused, looking closely at each King's face. I counted three officers amongst the dead.

A single gunshot reminded me of the fighting above. I hadn't even noticed the silence, focused on the bodies and ignoring the gore. Chief Harmen's plan had worked, but despite infiltrating the Kings he still hadn't arrested Marcus. And now his officers were dying in place of actual Kanto Kings. Why was he taking so long? Did the Apostles interrupt him? Did we?

There was silence. Not a single bullet. But there were only a couple more floors before the roof. Had the Saviors won? I turned away from the bodies and walked up to the next floor. It was the same story here: A few more Saviors and a few officers and non-officer Kings dead or dying. The dying didn't pay any attention to me, but I sprinted across the room before they could.

This was the final floor. I could hear men shouting on the roof, and I recognized Marcus' voice. There weren't many bodies on this floor, but Karen and Chief Harmen weren't amongst them. There wasn't a single King; they were all Saviors. I could guess what had happened.

The door to the roof was open, and as I crept around to look up the stairs I saw a man in green guarding the staircase. He saw me before I saw him, and he leapt down before I could react. He rolled down the bottom step and wrapped his arm around my leg, bringing me to the ground as I tried to run. He pulled me toward him, grabbing around my chest, and lifted me to my feet.

The shouting had stopped. "Chief?" A voice called nervously. "You saw someone?"

"Yea," Chief Harmen's gruff voice shouted back. "Just a civilian who got too close!"

His grip loosened, allowing me to turn around. Chief Harmen's grim, darkened face scowled at me. "What are you doing here?" He muttered. "Your Challenger friend is gone; you shouldn't be here."

Then he connected the dots. "Wait…" he said quietly. "You're with the Saviors? Did you help them kill these men?"

"No! No! They forced me here!" I said quickly.

"You were alone," he countered. "You should've run."

"The Apostles are outside-" I said, thinking of an excuse other than vengeance for why I didn't do exactly that.

That, thankfully, seemed to convince him. "You can't stay here. Marcus is still after you, and he can't know you're here." He released his grip on me, and I stumbled onto my knees. "Get down to the hospital."

"I can't," I whispered. "They'll attack me!"

Before Chief Harmen could respond, Marcus' voice called down, "Chief Harmen! Get up here! I need you to witness this!"

Chief Harmen averted his gaze guiltily as my face filled with accusation and suspicion. "Why haven't you arrested him?" I demanded. "What's taking you so long?"

"None of your concern, kid," he replied briefly. "Now leave."

Chief Harmen turned to walk up the stairs, but Marcus had grown impatient and had started climbing down. The two met on the staircase, and then both turned to me. Marcus blinked, his eyes widening, before shouting: "What the fuck are you doing? That's the murderer! Bring him to me!"

Chief Harmen didn't hesitate. He turned back toward me and ran at me. Again, I tried to run, and again this surprisingly agile man caught up to me and wrapped his arms around me.

"What are you doing? Why are you following his orders?" I shouted, struggling to break free. His strength was far too much. "Let go of me!"

"There's nothing I can do now," Chief Harmen said, almost regretfully. He turned around, letting Marcus get a good look at me.

The war had clearly taken its toll on Marcus; his disheveled black hair had greyed significantly, and his five o' clock shadow had turned into a full greyed beard. Stress lines creased along his face, and he was nursing a bandaged shoulder and bleeding leg. Nevertheless, he smiled as he saw me struggling to escape.

"Somehow, through it all, you came back to face your punishment," he said softly. He placed a hand on my shoulder. "Thank you for understanding reason. You jerked me around at every opportunity. You ran from me, killed my men, sided with the police, killed more men, sided with the Saviors, killed more men, yet you still came here."

"Fuck you," was all I could say. I spat at him, but he dodged to the side.

When he recovered, his smile had disappeared, replaced with a venomous scowl. "Tonight, I will deal with two people who deserve death. Then we will defeat the Apostles."

He climbed the stairs, and Chief Harmen followed. Now that we were on the roof, the sounds of war muffled by the building's walls were free to climb upward. But even the turmoil beneath us couldn't drown out the screams of Karen as she struggled with all of her strength to tear away from the two men holding her to her knees. Blood streamed from wounds in her leg and hip, and her grimace revealed several missing teeth. Despite her adrenaline fueling her, she couldn't overpower her captors.

Chief Harmen closed the door behind us and locked it. Even with only one arm gripping me, I still didn't have the strength to break free. I was completely trapped; I couldn't reach into my pockets to grab my Moemon, and I had no backup to rescue me. The Saviors were all dead, the Kings weren't on my side, and the Apostles had no way to know we were up here. It was just the six of us: Marcus, Chief Harmen, and the two Kings holding Karen and I hostage.

Marcus held a pistol in his healthy hand, and he fought a limp walking over to her. He pointed the gun at her and looked to me, smiling.

"Why did you run?" He asked curiously. "I don't think I ever got an answer. You said you were innocent, but you ran."

"Because you're a fucking lunatic," I spat. "You weren't going to wait for evidence; you were going to kill me when you felt like it."

"I'm a fair man. I was going to scavenge that tower for evidence. But you slaughtered my men and scampered away to hide under the protection of the police." He stopped to smirk. "Yet here you are in the arms of the man who you believed would save you."

"Why are you doing this?" I asked quietly. "Just… just arrest him, please."

Marcus walked over to me, holding his injured hand to his ear. "Did I just hear you correctly? Did you just ask Chief Harmen to arrest me? Do you believe that's going to work?"

I couldn't see his face, but I could feel Chief Harmen's body tense as Marcus approached. I simply stared at Marcus until he grew bored.

"Of course it won't work, you stupid child," Marcus continued, frowning disappointingly. "Because Chief Harmen and the police are working with the Kanto Kings to stop this ridiculous war. Just like they did when the Kings were declared the victor in the last war."

Karen laughed mockingly, and Marcus snapped back to her. "The kid's right: you are a lunatic. You think the police would work with you after all you did? You're a ruthless murderer."

"I'm nothing compared to you, Donavan," Marcus growled. "You'll face justice for hundreds of the men you slaughtered."

"Well, _Monroe_ , I hope Greg and I see you in Hell once the Apostles find you." Karen smirked. "You'll never win. Even if I'm not the one who puts a bullet in you, you won't survive the night. I'll die knowing that."

"You'll die a failure scrambling at any chance to pretend you didn't miserably fuck up and get everyone you knew slaughtered." Marcus cracked Karen across the skull with the butt of his pistol. Karen gasped in pain as the two men pulled her upright. Then Marcus pointed the barrel on the wound and pushed.

"You fucker," Karen seethed. "I hope you die screaming."

Marcus turned back to me. "I suppose you thought Karen gave you hope. She was a strong woman, and she still had the balls to lead her men up this store to fight an army. But she's a broken widow who fought the wrong battle. She had her killer in her grasp for so long, but she chose the wrong man." As if struck by a brilliant idea, he grinned knowingly. "Did you hear me, Karen? Arthur was the person who killed your husband. He admitted it by running. You could've avenged Greg at any time. So not only did you fail to kill me, a man you wrongfully pursue, but you also failed to kill a scared, pathetic child."

"You didn't kill Greg," Karen said venomously. "I don't give a shit about that; I never could. You're a monster, and you commanded the slaughter of my men. That's the vengeance."

"Then you couldn't avenge Greg, your men, or yourself," Marcus countered. "So die knowing that you're a failure."

Then he fired, blowing a hole right through Karen's skull. Karen lurched backward as blood shot out of the back of her head, and then she collapsed. The Kings released her arms, and she dropped to the ground.

"And so ends the reign of the Celadon Savio-" Marcus started, staring at the body, before he suddenly lurched forward. Blood shot out of the side of his head as his body fell, dropping on top of Karen's. And there the two lay, the life draining out of them as they bled on top of each other. Two furious enemies in an eternal embrace.

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy


	20. Chapter 19: The Second Celadon War

The moment Marcus fell, the Kings dove aside in panic. Chief Harmen and I stood momentarily stunned until the deafening, unmistakable crack of a gunshot hit our ears. At that moment, instinct kicked in, and Chief Harmen kicked the door completely off its hinges. As the door slid down the steps, Chief Harmen leapt after it, gripping me tightly. His knees buckled as he landed on the door, but he recovered quickly and rushed into the room. He pushed me behind a wide park bench and dove behind it himself, rolling to his knee and aiming his pistol at the staircase.

The two Kings sprinted down the stairs, but as they turned to run across the floor Chief Harmen fired twice. Each bullet found the skulls of the Kings, and both men dropped. He ran over to their bodies and fired a second bullet into each their heads.

He put his gun away and ran over to me. I flinched, worried he was going to do the same to me, but instead he pulled me into a hug. I was stunned; I couldn't even react otherwise. I simply let him grab me and try to console me.

"I will explain," he assured me. "Trust that I'll tell you the truth. But stay down here and do not move. I need to finish this."

He pulled away and walked back up the stairs, briefly pausing to unholster his pistol once more. He disappeared, and I finally had time to process everything.

Marcus had shot Karen, and then immediately he'd been sniped. He'd been fucking sniped! There was a fucking sniper trained on him, and that sniper waited until Karen was dead before firing. Why the fuck did that sniper wait? And then Chief Harmen suddenly shot and killed those two Kings – who hopefully weren't actual officers. But Chief Harmen said he was working with the Kings. But why did he go to the roof, and what was he doing?

I finally regained my senses and feeling in my legs. I struggled to my feet and dragged my feet over to the staircase. I heard voices. Was Chief Harmen talking to the dead men? No… it was a woman's voice. Was it Karen? No… she was dead too. I crawled up the stairs and peeked over the doorframe. Chief Harmen was standing at the edge of the roof talking with a woman in blue floating in midair.

"That's a Sis-" I barely got out before another woman materialized in front of me. I gasped in shock as the woman grabbed my arm and wrenched me up the stairs. Once again, I felt myself lifted into the air and struggling against a strength that surpassed my own. "Get off me!"

The woman took one look at me, snorted amusedly, and released me. I fell to my knees, glaring at her.

"What are the chances that you're up here?" Sister Belle asked, smirking. "The Challenger who wanted no part in this war turning up with all of the leaders?"

Now that I was outside, I saw that all four of the Sisters were on the roof. Chief Harmen had paused a conversation with Sister Anna to stare at me disappointedly, while the two other Sisters stood to the side.

Sister Belle looked up at their leader curiously. "What do we do with the Challenger?"

I blinked, my glare falling as I considered her words. What had I just witnessed? Sister Anna approached me, studying me.

"Challenger, you've made this situation difficult for us all," she said dispassionately. "If you were anyone else, you would not survive this night. Fortunately for you, your position gives us a great reason to allow you to survive." I could feel fear filling my face as she spoke. There was nothing in her eyes; no regret, no anger. Simply a cold emptiness. "For you to walk away, you will – if ever asked – fully support the Mewtwo's Apostles and all their endeavors from now until your inevitable defeat. Furthermore, you will never mention to anyone any evidence of a connection between the Mewtwo's Apostles and the Celadon Police."

She paused, waiting for me to comply. I hesitated. This was the ultimatum, but it forced me to pick a side – the very thing I refused to do. I didn't care about this war; I didn't care who won. I just wanted out. And this was my out.

However, she understood my natural silence, so she elaborated. "You claimed that you didn't want to choose a side. There is no choice; you support us, or you or your Moemon will die."

"You don't have to do anything public," said Chief Harmen supportively. "If you keep out of sight, no one will know."

Sister Anna nodded. "We will not force you to make an announcement like Jared before you. It may harm our position anyway. Simply disappear, and we'll never speak again."

"Just… just like that, and you'll let me go."

"You'll be free to leave," Sister Anna answered calmly. She knew I had no choice.

I knew that too. "Fine," I muttered. "If anyone asks, the Mewtwo's Apostles… what? They're the new power."

"Their actions are the righteous ones, and their decisions will benefit society for all. Moemon are being given rights that they have deserved for centuries. The Kanto Kings and Celadon Saviors – while noble – were simply clinging to the past. The Mewtwo's Apostles are the future of Kanto." Sister Anna corrected. "That is what you will say to anyone who asks otherwise."

"What about the Kanto Kings and Celadon Saviors?" I asked, glancing Karen and Marcus. "Am I… Am I allowed to ask questions?"

Sister Anna nodded slowly. "However, I will not answer everything."

I felt like I already learned too much. I felt sick, and I just wanted to leave, but I was still curious. "What's going to happen to them?"

"That's easy," Sister Belle piped up. "The Celadon Saviors died with Karen. They'll be remembered as martyrs, but they were despised anyway; few will miss them. As for the Kanto Kings, Marcus' actions will be spread across the land. Everyone will know how the leader of the Kanto Kings massacred men, women, and children and forced a manhunt on an innocent teenager. Their name will be sullied, and they'll be despised. Their power will fade."

Sister Anna eyed Sister Belle warily. "Please let Chief Harmen and I respond."

Sister Belle nodded, pouting. Chief Harmen approached us at the mention of his name, so I directed my next question to him. "So when you told me the messengers didn't make it to the Mewtwo's Apostles…"

"He did," he answered. "The assault began, while my men and I – under the guise of a partnership with Marcus – provided personal protection."

I pointed off into the distance. "And you had a sniper…"

Chief Harmen averted his gaze. "The plan was to retreat to the roof as the Mewtwo's Apostles reached the Department Store. However, the Saviors assaulted the building and killed all of my men. We only just managed to capture Karen. I didn't give him an order to shoot her; I suppose he wanted to kill two birds."

"He let Karen die," I said, more defensively than I'd expected. As much as I tried to despise her, I couldn't while watching her bleeding corpse. She was the strongest woman I'd ever seen, and she died on her knees fighting until the end. "He could've… killed Marcus at any time."

"That was his decision," Chief Harmen replied. He wouldn't look in the direction of the bodies. "However, I will not argue against the outcome; it was for the best."

"Is he still there, watching us?" I demanded. "How do I know he won't just shoot us?"

"Because his orders were to assassinate Marcus," answered Chief Harmen. "Provided Marcus turned dangerous against us. He isn't watching us, anymore; he's gone back to the station."

"Who was he?"

"That, I won't reveal," he said firmly.

"Then tell me why you chose them," I said, motioning toward Sister Anna. "Why didn't you tell me you were working with them?"

"I won't. And I didn't because it doesn't concern you," said Chief Harmen.

"What else are you lying to me about?" I asked. I respected Chief Harmen; I thought he was one of the few men who was honorable above all else. Like Mayor Porter in that regard. But he lied to me and sent me into danger for no reason. There was no risk to his infiltration; he made it into the Department Store easily! He was probably there when Marcus was about to kill Eric, and he did nothing to stop it! If that was the plan, then I didn't have to leave the police station, and I wouldn't have had to be here for all this! "Did any of your men know about your plan? Did Miles? If he delivered me to Marcus, would you have sat by and let him kill me?"

"Of course I wouldn't," he answered immediately. "I wouldn't risk a Challenger's life."

"Then why didn't you save Eric?"

His eyes widened in shock. He hesitated, and I knew that his answer would be a lie. "I wasn't there… I didn't know."

I simply nodded, watching the guilt in his eyes. I didn't know what to think of him anymore. Did his manipulation wipe out the good he'd done? Marcus was dead, and the war was over. All thanks to his brilliant plan. But he risked so many lives to get here.

"Can I leave, please?" I asked Sister Anna.

Sister Anna seemed slightly impressed. She looked at Sister Belle. "Take the Challenger out of the city."

"Yes, ma'am," said Sister Belle quietly. She picked me up, gently this time, and floated off the roof toward the west. We floated silently over the city, feeling the soft winds hitting our faces and watching the neon lights brighten up the streets. It was quiet below; the war had ended while we talked.

As we passed over the city walls – the street signs and lights replaced with scattered campfires – Sister Belle spoke. "You never cared about our mission, but it's one that us sisters risked everything for. Mary Beth lost her life for it, and so many of our followers did as well. We all believe that we'd provide a better future for everyone. At the very least, you can respect that."

I could, but I didn't want to reply. I was too busy thinking about what had happened on that roof. In less than an hour, two important, powerful, and influential figures were assassinated, and a new regime was formed with backing from the police. The Mewtwo's Apostles would replace the Kanto Kings as the new power in Celadon City, and if the rumors were true then their power would quickly reach across the region.

I'd never get their bodies out of my mind. They were gone. I was finally free, but I felt empty and scared. I'd replaced one monster with a scarier, more sinister one. I wasn't going to be hunted, but I had no doubt every move I made was going to be watched. I was at the mercy of four incredibly powerful Moemon who now had control of the entire city.

We dropped lower and lower as we floated across the rolling fields. The hundreds of thousands of evacuees we passed dwindled as we flew further from the city. Campfires were fewer and fewer, and the noise quieted to nothing.

Sister Belle stopped a few inches off the ground. "I'm letting go now," she informed. I nodded, and I dropped to the ground, rolling to my knees. I looked back up to see her giving a small wave. "See you later, maybe." Then she disappeared, and I was alone.

I looked around. There were no silhouettes nearby in the darkness; I was the only one around for nearly a mile. I took a deep breath, and suddenly felt the cold of the night. I shivered. I needed warmth. I pulled the Moeballs out of my pocket and threw them to the ground. As the shimmering white lights faded, my Moemon surrounded me.

"Arthur?" Christine said curiously, looking around. "Where are we?"

"Out of the city," I said quietly, and then I fell forward and pulled Christine into a hug. Immediately I felt the warmth, and I felt so much better. "We're free."

Olivia gasped. "We made it out!"

"What happened to you?" asked Christine. "You're shaking."

I shook my head and buried my face deeper into her shoulder. I didn't want to answer. I could hear Olivia and Rose and Annie cheering. But Stacy and Bailey wouldn't join the hug; they watched me warily. They noticed what Christine had noticed.

"Do you want to talk about what happened?" asked Stacy.

"Later," I whispered only loud enough for Christine to hear, and she told the others. They understood. "I love you all so much."

"We love you too," Christine replied. I could feel her smile as she rubbed my back.

* * *

We held the pose for a long time, but eventually the others grew restless and forced me to move. I suddenly realized how long it had been since I ate, and I was starving. We made a small fire and pulled sleeping bags out of my backpack. Unfortunately, most of the food had been crushed in the past days, so all I had for the seven of us was a few slightly expired sausages, which we ate ravenously. It was the most delicious thing I'd ever had. It tasted like a ton of weight had suddenly been released.

Once we ate, I explained what happened since they were put into their balls. When I got to Eric and Helen, I noticed the girls move closer to each other, comforting Stacy. Even Bailey allowed them to hug her, although she seemed noticeably uncomfortable.

Then I got to the Department Store, and I found it hard to put it into words. I ended up skipping most of the floors, most of the violence. I assured them that Eric was saved, because they needed it as much as I did, and then I got to the roof. Karen and Marcus were killed, and Sister Anna let me live if I supported them with all of their decisions.

"Then Sister Belle brought me here and disappeared," I concluded. "And then I sent you out of your balls. I haven't talked to any of the others. I should… talk to Quinton."

"But you're being held hostage, aren't you?" asked Rose.

I nodded slightly. "I just can't say anything bad about them. I've got to support them."

"But what if you don't?" asked Olivia. "What if they do something awful?"

"Then I suppose I'll just keep from talking."

"That's impossible, knowing you," Bailey teased.

"Bailey made a joke!" Annie cheered. "She's one of us, now!"

Bailey frowned, but the grin creeped up her lips. "Bah, I'm just tired from saving our trainer's ass for so long."

I glanced at Stacy. "We're free. Do you want to have that talk?" She shook her head silently. I hesitated at the next question. "Your… uncle's still in the city. Do you want to find him now?"

She hesitated as well. "Do you think it's safe to return to the city?"

"When the war's officially over," I replied. "Erika's still in there. I don't think I'll stay there long, but I at least have to get my badge."

"Then I'll wait," answered Stacy, and I felt an immense relief. "If the Mewtwo's Apostles have won, and if my uncle is still on their side, we will meet eventually."

"When will it be safe, though?" Bailey scoffed.

"Days," I suggested. "Weeks. Never, probably. I don't really want to go back, but I'll probably have to."

"I don't want to wait that long," Christine pouted.

"Christine," I said quietly, shaking my head. "Please… just for tonight, now that we're safe, let's just not worry about anything. I don't… I don't care about training or gym battles or becoming Champion or any of that bullshit." I sighed. "We're alive. We're safe. We're out. Let's just be happy."

"Sorry," Christine whispered quickly.

"Take your time," Rose insisted. "We'll wait, if you require it."

I looked at her curiously. "Are none of you affected by what we just went through?" Not a single Moemon had fear nor sadness nor regret in their eyes. I could only imagine the mixture of emotions I was trying and failing to repress.

"We explained to you when this journey began," Stacy explained. "We're used to the cruelty of this world. Murder is… commonplace."

"Even mass murder like that?" I asked, pointing at the glowing city.

"No, of course not. A war like that has never occurred in our short lives."

"Even the last war didn't have that much dead," added Bailey.

"But it doesn't hurt us like it hurts humans," continued Stacy. "We don't usually mourn."

"But how are you all feeling?" I asked.

"How are you feeling, first?" asked Stacy.

I stared at my hands as they shook, unable to control them. "I still think I'm going to die. I can still see the dead I walked over. Still hear the screams and the bullets and the explosions. I can smell the blood and death."

I could feel my voice begin to tremble as the emotion bubbled to the surface. Christine put her arms around me as my entire body began to shake. "I'm terrified…"

Christine kept holding me until I could control my shaking. I kept my eyes firmly on the ground, a single part of my body I could control. Nobody spoke, and I couldn't see them looking at each other. When the feeling of fear and dread subsided, and my shaking finally stopped, I looked up at them.

"I'm sorry…" I said, regretting my weakness. I couldn't even hide it from them; I hoped they didn't think I was pathetic. "But… but your answers," I insisted, needing the distraction. "Please."

"I just want you to be better," Christine answered, almost a whisper into my ear.

"That's not a feeling," I replied softly.

"I feel great!" Annie said cheerfully. "We're out of that scary place, and it's really peaceful here!"

"Hopeful," added Rose, nodding. "We are safe. We don't have to run anymore."

"I like hopeful," Olivia smiled. "Hopeful's good. We can put this behind us in time and look to the future."

"Conflicted," replied Stacy, watching me. "We are safe, but there is still more I wish to do."

"I understand," I replied. "But what about what you accomplished?"

"I… am still conflicted."

I nodded. Bailey hadn't responded, and she was looking to the side. "Bailey?"

Bailey looked back to me, distracted. "Hmm?"

"How do you feel?"

She shrugged. "Does it matter?"

"To me it does."

"I feel like we should move on."

"No regrets?"

Hesitation. "None."

I wasn't surprised. I turned to look at Christine, seeing her head inches from my own. The light of the fire illuminated her face, giving her an angelic glow. She studied me intently, the fire burning in her eyes.

"How do you feel?" I insisted.

"I feel happy," she replied, smiling slightly. "I'm proud of you."

I gave a slight chuckle. "You're proud of me? I should be proud of you."

"You risked your life to find us all. You brought us all together and kept us safe. You made sure we were never in danger, no matter what happened to you. You're such a brave and kind person."

I couldn't suppress my grin, hoping the light didn't highlight my blushing cheeks. "I did what anyone would've done."

"Don't be ridiculous," Bailey scoffed. "Do you know how many people I saw run in panic the moment this all began? All of these cowards hiding out of the city would never have done what you did."

"Quinton would've," I argued.

But Bailey shook her head, disgusted. "He wouldn't. He's weak. Maybe for his Metang, and even then she'd do all the hard work for him. No, he's not brave."

"Bailey, please, don't insult him."

Bailey clicked her tongue in annoyance. "Don't deny it. He ran just like all the others."

"He was captured by men dressed as police," I recounted Quinton's story. "He would've been dragged to the Mewtwo's Apostles just like me if Melody didn't stop them."

Bailey blinked. "Is that what you saw, or is that what he told you?"

I hesitated, staring at her in confusion. "Why are you asking that?"

"Did you see it?" She repeated more insistently.

"No, I was dragged away by two police as well…" I said, suddenly unsure of myself. I hadn't… seen anyone else get on stage when it all went down. "Then they put a bag on my head."

"I flew high the moment that man was killed," Bailey continued, hovering slightly to prove her point. "I saw two men near the stage run up and grab you and rush you away, and I saw your Challenger friends watch them. They didn't move. Then more police – led by that Chief – ran on stage and grab the other two. There was no other 'two police'. They brought them back to the building, but after that I followed you."

"So you're saying Quinton lied about being dragged away?" I asked. "He's lying about Melody saving him? Why?"

"To save face."

"How did he and Eric get separated, then?" I demanded. It was such a ridiculous thing to lie about. Quinton wouldn't need to save face, but Bailey had no reason to lie either.

"How should I know? I just said I followed you into the city. Do you want me to tell you what they did to that mayor's body? Because I'd had the same answer." She paused, realizing her tone had been far too argumentative. "Sorry… I'm sure you two are close."

"He risked everything to join me," I said. "Why would he lie to me? There's no point."

"Ask him yourself," she said simply. "I'm telling you what I saw."

I looked at my watch. It had been silent the entire time. It was nearly dawn, so they were likely asleep. But still, nobody knew I was out of the city. Or they didn't care.

I hesitated. That last thought hurt, but there was some catharsis about being free from the thoughts of everyone. About being worried about yet completely safe.

I tapped Quinton's name and watched his name flash. I could only imagine the immense relief he would feel when he saw my name and see that I was outside the city walls. I could see that he was just a mile away, far away from the city. I could find him in ten minutes, if that. But I needed to hear his voice. Needed to hear that relief.

Then the name stopped flashing, and Quinton's groggy voice came through. "…Arthur?"

"Hey, Quinton," I replied. "I'm out."

"Out?" Then the realization struck. "Wait, you're out of the city! Arthur!"

"I'm not too far from you," I said. "I'll come to you."

"No, don't!" Quinton said excitedly. I could hear him gathering things in the background. "I'll be there in ten! Oh Arthur! You're safe!"

He hung up, and I was left staring at my watch. "Bailey… you're positive?"

"I know what I saw."

"Do you think it matters?"

Bailey shrugged. "That's up to you."

I sighed. The excitement in his voice gave me so much relief; I hated imagining the tragedy of breaking that excitement by accusing him of lying. I decided it mattered, but not at that moment. There were so many things I needed to talk about, but not now. Now was the time for celebration.

The war, as far as I cared, was over. Olivia was right: I needed to close that chapter of this journey and look to the future. I'd never forget about what happened, and I knew what happened would have ramifications. But I survived, and my Moemon survived. The Second Celadon War ended with that last bullet.

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy


	21. Chapter 20: Route 16

Quinton burst into the light of the campfire just a few minutes later, sweating and exhausted. He gasped for breath as he dropped armfuls of supplies haphazardly on the ground. His Moemon followed closely behind, gasping for joy as they collided with my own. The group devolved into relieved laughter, and everyone was in each other's arms.

When Quinton and I separated, the laughter had died down, and his side sat down eagerly awaiting my story. I frowned, already tired from giving the speech once before. I didn't want to give it so many more times.

"You look awful, like you've been running for days," Quinton joked, trying to ease me in.

I smiled uncertainly. "I think I have." I blinked, slightly swaying as my body wanted to give in to my exhaustion.

He noticed. "Do you want to wait until we're all together?" He suggested. I nodded gratefully. "Then I guess we should call the others, right? Or do you want to talk more?"

"I kind of just want to sleep," I admitted. I nodded at the swear dripping from his nose. "But I don't think you'll be able to after your run."

Quinton smirked. "Already cracking jokes?" His smirk quickly dropped. "So are you okay?"

"Of course not, man," I muttered, shaking my head. "I don't know if I'll ever be okay. Like I said, I just want to sleep."

"Do you, really?"

I recalled the eyes and the ocean of blood and the drowning bodies. I shivered, suddenly feeling cold. "No," I admitted quietly. "I'm scared to sleep."

"I know. You talk in your sleep," Quinton replied.

"Do I really?"

Quinton nodded. "You look miserable when you sleep. Ever since your fight with Eric-" he paused, watching me carefully. "-uh…"

"You can say his name. I know he's safe; I saw it myself. It won't fix what I did, but I can get some closure from it."

"Right… well, you're incredibly restless and constantly muttering. Always about eyes."

I winced. I had no idea he knew about my dreams. If he knew, my Moemon knew, and I had to keep from glancing at Olivia. "I don't want to talk about sleeping anymore."

"I just hope it'll be dreamless," said Quinton. "You deserve it."

I gave Christine's hand a squeeze. "I know what'll help," I said. "But seriously, let's change the subject. What've you been doing these past few days? Not training."

"I couldn't risk it," Quinton answered. "There isn't a Moemon Center nearby; the nearest is in Fuschia City, but that is a four-day hike. I also couldn't let anyone else know I'm a Challenger. We're still being hunted, remember."

"I'm used to that," I muttered. It had slipped my mind since the police station, and the reminder only gave me something else to worry about. "You haven't seen any of the Hunters prowling around?"

"None that stand out," Quinton replied. "Do you want the folder?"

I shook my head. "I wouldn't remember it after I sleep. I'll read it later."

"No sign of Hunter N, by the way. I know you warned me about him."

I nodded, glancing at Stacy's icy stare. Quinton continued, "I've been walking around from campsite to campsite learning what I could from the locals. I met a lot of nice people who were kind enough to give me supplies. I gave them false names; I don't think any of them recognized me."

"What'd you learn?" I asked.

"There were rumors of Challengers in the city, so all news helicopters were barred from filming any of the war," Quinton answered grimly. He pointed off in the distance at a moving spark in the sky. "Part of the Challenger Identity Protection Act - that law banning filming challengers. They can only film up to the city walls."

I tilted my head curiously. "Why do you seem so upset about that?"

"It's just ridiculous. The entire region was watching the war, and nobody could see what was happening. An entire civil war is going to go unrecorded just because of that law."

"So what? I don't want it recorded; I don't want to be reminded of it!"

"Everything that was accomplished in that city will go undocumented," Quinton elaborated. "What will happen is people will fabricate facts. Nobody will know the truth. Nobody will know how the war will be won."

"It already ended, Quinton, and I know exactly how it was won," I replied grimly. "I was there when it happened."

"You're one person," Quinton countered. "Even if you're a Challenger, there's no proof that you were there to witness it."

"Fair point," I conceded. "Not that I'd ever tell anyone."

"If you told anyone, someone would disagree with you, and the truth will be forever lost."

"That's a bit of an exaggeration."

"History's written by the victors, Arthur," Quinton reminded me. "Who won today?"

"The Mewtwo's Apostles."

Quinton paused, surprised. "Oh. Well, how did they win?"

I paused this time, unsure if I wanted to recall. Quinton could see that I was uncomfortable, so he softened. "Just saw a word. I just want to prove a point."

I obliged. "Well, they-"

"I disagree," Quinton interrupted. "The Mewtwo's Apostles actually won by blowing up the city."

"But that's ridiculous," I countered, pointing at the not-blown-up city. "No one would believe that."

Quinton smirked. "You'd be surprised. But fair enough; they actually won by mind controlling everyone in the city to surrender."

"They can't do that."

"How do you know? Something I learned was that the leaders of the Mewtwo's Apostles are all powerful Psychic Moemon. Mind control seems like something they're capable of doing."

"But an entire city?"

"Who would counter my argument? I could just say their minds were altered."

"You can't erase the bodies lining the streets."

"To be fair, you can, but I see your point. My explanation is obviously incredibly flawed, but I hope you understand why I'm upset. If all of this wasn't documented by numerous sources, nobody will know the truth."

"It's a big city," I reasoned. "Nobody could know everything that happened. Something will be lost."

"The important events wouldn't. The cameras watched the Donavan Tower fall, but they couldn't watch it being scavenged. All of these recent explosions had to be hidden. Whatever happened that actually ended the war wasn't recorded. The world will never know."

I nodded, too tired to argue anymore. I understood Quinton's argument, but I didn't see why he cared about what this world saw. We weren't part of it; we shouldn't care what they did or didn't see.

"There were more rumors," Quinton continued after we sat in silence for a few moments. "Rumors that Jennifer Gordon never existed."

It seemed like an eternity since I last heard that name. The girl who was killed in the explosion that destroyed the school. "She never… existed?"

Quinton nodded. "I talked to a lot of parents who had children enrolled in the school. No one ever heard of a child by that name."

"So Mayor Porter lied about her dying?"

"I understand why he'd do it. Attempt to unite the gangs to prevent more tragedies like the loss of an innocent child."

"Must've been told by the police to do it," I said, recalling the several quiet talks Mayor Porter had with Chief Harmen before the speech.

"Do you really think so? These were just rumors. Maybe she was a recent transfer student."

The rooftop flashed in my mind. The crack of a sniper rifle. "The police are definitely capable of it."

Quinton frowned. "Arthur, are you saying the Celadon Police are just as corrupt as the Cerulean Police?"

"No, they're not terrifying," I answered. "They protected both of us, right? They just wanted peace…" I trailed off.

He stared at me, expecting me to say more. "But…"

"But they did things that prove they can be just as bad as all three of those gangs. They know the truth, Quinton, but they'll never tell it. And I can't tell anyone without endangering our lies."

That last sentence threw him off guard. "Come again?" He said. "Why would our lives be in danger?"

"The Mewtwo's Apostles threatened me," I muttered, careful not to say too much. "I can't tell anyone what happened tonight, and I have to support all of their actions if I'm asked."

"That's awful, and it's exactly what I was talking about! What if you don't support them?"

"Then I'd better hope no one cares about my opinion."

"But you told us what happened, Arthur," Christine reminded me.

I grimaced. I had, and I'd done it without realizing the danger. "Guess since we're still alive, they either weren't listening or don't care about you guys." I looked back at Quinton. "I'm serious. If I'm feeling up to it, I'll talk about everything up until the Department Store. No one can know."

"I understand. I don't want to get you in trouble."

"I hope the others take it as well as you do."

"You haven't told them anything?"

I shook my head. "They haven't called me, and I've been too busy recovering."

"Do you want to?"

I sighed. Of course I didn't want to, but with Quinton with me it felt like the best time. "It's dawn. Think they'll be up?" I didn't wait for an answer. I pulled up Sam's name and tapped it. "I hope he's in a good mood."

He wasn't. He picked up after the fifth ring, grunting into the watch. "Arthur…?"

"Sam, hey," I said awkwardly. "Uh… sorry about the bad time, but could you get the others?"

"Wha… yea, yeah…" he shuffled around. "You're out of the city?"

"Oh, yeah, I'm out."

"What? Since when?"

"Few hours," I answered. "Not long enough for you to get mad at me."

He hesitated. "Arthur, seriously, after the shit you've been through I'm not mad at you. I'll get the others. Just wait until I call you back." He hung up.

I looked at Quinton, noting the concern on his face. "Now we wait."

"There's still Hannah."

"And Molly," I added. "But I won't hold my breath for her." I pulled up Hannah's name. She answered nearly immediately.

"Oh my god! You finally called!" She cried. "I saw you two together, but I didn't want to interrupt or anything! You're finally out, Arthur!"

"I'm finally out," I echoed. "I'm glad you sound so happy."

"I'm relieved! All of these things I've heard! People are so callous in this town! There's a betting pool at my restaurant about who will win! It's awful!"

"Who'd you place your money on?" I asked.

"Arthur!" She scolded. "How could you make jokes about this?"

"Because I lived it, and I'd rather joke about it than cry," I said bitterly. "I'm waiting to cry in my dreams."

"…Arthur? Are you okay?"

"I'm better than I've been in a long time. I'm out of that hellhole, and no one openly hates me. It's all up from here." I couldn't manage any more excitement; I was just tired.

"Please, Arthur, I'm here if you want to talk. Don't be afraid to vent to me; I won't say a word to anyone."

"I appreciate it. I'm sure I'll feel better later. I just haven't slept yet."

"Well try to get a long rest," she said hesitantly. "I can't imagine it'll be easy, but try."

"Talk to you later, Hannah."

"I'm glad you're safe."

I hung up. I barely looked at Quinton when it rung again. Sam's name flashed on the screen. All of them had gathered surprisingly quickly in Sam's room.

"Glad to see you safe, Arthur!" Max's voice shouted in the distance. After that call, the room erupted into cheers, dissolving into a mess of static.

I couldn't help but smile as I replied, "Thanks, everyone! I hope you guys don't hate me too much!"

"Don't bring that up, man," groaned Garrett. "It's not the time for that!"

"Is there something you wanted to tell us?" asked Connor. "You brought us all together for a reason."

I bit my lip. I'd already told the story once tonight. I might as well tell it again so that I didn't have to dwell on it as I slept. "Alright guys, I'll give you the basics. I can't say everything; I've been told by very powerful people not to say some things. Just keep that in mind if I have holes."

There was silence on the other end. We were still connected, so I assumed they were quiet in anticipation. I recounted the tale once more: summarizing the journey across the city, the destruction of the tower and Marcus' subsequent accusations; the escape to the police station and the plan, and Karen's kidnapping. At that point, I thought very carefully about the finale.

"We went to the Department Store," I decided. "Karen was killed, and Marcus was killed. The Kanto Kings lost to the Mewtwo's Apostles."

A pause. "But what about Chief Harmen's plan?" asked Jack.

"I don't know," I lied. "Never saw him."

"So the Mewtwo's Apostles won the war?" asked Thomas. "Does that mean the war's over?"

"We'll be able to go up to Celadon City soon?" added Rebecca excitedly.

"We'll find out soon, I think," said Quinton, speaking into my watch. "Chief Harmen gave me a radio when he escorted me."

That reminded me of something. I felt my pocket for the radio Karen had given to me. I needed to check it later on the off chance I could still hear chatter.

"Well tell us so we can head for you guys," said Drew. "It's a two-day trip, right?"

"If you go through Lavender, yes," I answered. "Although I don't know if the tram is going to be working. You might be trapped on the other side of Saffron."

"We'll go through Saffron City, then," said Thomas. "Come on, like that's going to stop us!"

"No," I warned quickly, remembering Hunter X's advice after my fight with his nephews. "Saffron City is home to the Hunters, remember?"

"We'll keep our heads down," said Jack reassuringly.

"A lot of people have been coming down to Vermillion," said Laura. "Even more will be flooding Saffron City. We'll blend in."

"It's a huge risk," I said.

"So we're not allowed to risk our lives after you just risked yours?" demanded Sam.

I gritted my teeth. "I had a good reason."

"And so do we," Sam argued. "To see you! We've all won our badges; we're strong. We can handle ourselves."

I sighed, knowing I wasn't going to convince them. This wasn't how I wanted this conversation to go. "Okay, Sam, just be careful. All of you."

"Let us know when it's safe to come up," Garrett piped up. "We'll get there as soon as we can."

The room shouted goodbye, and I hung up. The deafening noise was replaced with eerie silence. I shuddered slightly, feeling the cold wind. Then I yawned, and exhaustion finally crashed down on me.

"Sorry, but I really have to sleep," I said. Quinton nodded understandingly and went about setting up his sleeping bags. I motioned for Christine to join me, and she obliged. We snuggled into my sleeping bag wrapped into each other's arms for warmth. The moment I set my head down, sleep took hold and surrounded me.

* * *

 _I opened my eyes to see nothing but black stretching to eternity. There was nothing in the sky, nothing below. No flame, no light; no sea, no sky. I breathed sharply, stunned by the infinite darkness. I looked down at my hands, but they weren't there. My body didn't exist. I couldn't feel anything. I was just there. Just existing._

 _It was horrifying; I needed to exist! I needed something to remind me that I was still alive! I tried to wake up, tried to force my eyes to open, but nothing happened. I was trapped in an endless void. Trying to feel, but there was nothing._

 _Then there was a miracle! I felt cold! I felt something, and I was so happy I barely noticed the cold came with a dampness. I looked down again, and suddenly there was a clear liquid crawling up my nonexistent legs. I felt my invisible hips, and then my chest, and then my neck. And then I realized that it wasn't stopping, that it covered my mouth. And I couldn't breathe. I was drowning. The liquid flowed into my nose and over my eyes, and suddenly I was blind. But I couldn't close my eyes; I could only feel the liquid flow through every opening into me, and I was helpless to stop it._

 _I tried to shout for help, tried to swim above the liquid, tried to breathe, but I couldn't move! I was trapped, suspended in this invisible suffocation, trapped in this freezing prison. I couldn't fight it; I could only let it overcome and encompass me. Trapped forever._

* * *

I shot up, gasping for breath, cold sweat dripping down my face. Christine shot up with me, tears in her eyes, apologizing for not being able to help. I barely heard her; I rubbed my shoulders, trying to feel the heat. Any heat. The fire was gone, but the sky was high in the sky, and I could feel nothing. I couldn't feel Christine's warmth; she was nothing to me.

I had to get heat. I scrambled out of the sleeping bag and stumbled to my feet, my weakened knees buckling as blood tried to rush through them. I collapsed as my body gave away, hitting the ground with an awful thunk.

"Arthur!" Christine shouted as she rushed to me, trying to warm me with her body. "Arthur, talk to me!"

My face was in the dirt, and suddenly I couldn't feel anything. I couldn't move, and the dirt was suffocating me. I tried to scream, but I couldn't make noise. I was completely helpless.

Christine pushed me onto my back, and I gasped air back into my lungs. She pulled me into a sitting position, rubbing my back and massaging my chest in her desperation. I couldn't see her face; my eyes fixed solely on the ground in front of me. My vision blurred, and her attempts to console me fell muddily upon my ears.

I could see shadows surrounding me, and I could sense them trying to fix me. But I was just glad to be able to feel. I couldn't go back to that eternity. My vision started to blacken, but I tried with all my strength to fight the darkness. I shook my head ever so slightly with my pathetic strength, but the blackness spread across my eyes. I started to panic, trying to will my body to move and help!

Then I felt something blisteringly cold splash across my face. My entire body seized up, and the darkness crawled back out of sight. I gasped, lurching backward instinctively and pushing backwards off the ground. I nearly fell over again, but Christine caught me just before my head hit the ground.

Water dripped off my face as I blinked the shock away. I could finally feel my body reacting to me, but I let myself recover in her arms. My breathing slowed as I calmed, and I slowly moved my arms and legs to make sure they still worked.

My vision recovered, and I looked my Moemon and Quinton and his Moemon watching me with mixed horror and concern. Olivia wiped her mouth, looking guilty. She muttered something, but water still dripped out of my ears and I could only vaguely hear an apology.

"Okay…" I managed to whisper, giving a soft smile. "…is k…"

It took an hour for me to recover enough to talk. All I could do in the meantime was sit and stare in front of me, barely moving my head if anyone passed by. Quinton offered me food, but I knew I couldn't eat. My Moemon constantly asked how I was recovering, but I could only mumble quiet words. They watched helplessly as I fought my weakness alone. That was all they could do.

I practiced the sentence silently, waiting for my voice to return. Olivia looked the most distraught, although I couldn't see Christine's face. Olivia stayed by my side, holding my arm, and I felt other pairs of hands rubbing my back.

Finally, it was time. I could whisper enough. "It's okay," I repeated, looking to my right, my voice audible enough to catch her ears. She looked to me in surprise. "Thank you."

"Arthur…?" Olivia croaked, holding back tears. "Are you…?"

"Fine," I answered quietly. "I'm fine…"

She breathed a sigh of relief and pulled herself into my arm. "You have to be fine… you're not escaping just to die on us now!"

My heart lurched at the word. Die… that was death I saw. The cold, endless nothingness of death; the reminder of all of those countless people who died fighting. I didn't see their bodies this time, I didn't feel their grips pulling me with them. I was with them. That liquid was their life essence; an entire ocean of life that they lose prematurely because of the war. So powerful that even Christine's warmth couldn't penetrate; even she couldn't beat death.

Eventually, Quinton put a plate of scrambled eggs and a cup of cool water in my lap, and I pushed my body to eat it. I got it down, barely chewing, barely tasting. But I had food in my stomach. It helped more than I could imagine. It wasn't long before I moved myself forward, and by that point the others stopped what they were doing to watch me.

"I'm okay, everyone," I answered the question on all of their minds. I tried to smile, but it fell into a grimace as my leg scraped ground but didn't pull me forward. "I'll… be okay."

"You were screaming," Quinton said quietly. "Screaming about drowning, and screaming about nothing."

I nodded slowly. "It was terrifying… it was all around me… the nothingness…"

Quinton nodded, staring at me raptly. But when I didn't elaborate, he added, "Do you not want to talk about it?"

I shook my head. "I don't want to go there again," I whispered. The very thought sent shivers through my body. "I don't want to go back."

My voice turned into a whimper, and Christine pulled me toward her. "You don't have to go back," she whispered into my ear. "You can stay here if you want."

"I don't want to go back there," I whispered again. I couldn't think of anything else to say; my mind couldn't form words. Only the single desire never to return to that nothingness. "I've never… that dream… so horrible."

"Shhh…" Christine shushed me softly. "We're here for you. We won't make you go back. You'll never have to go back."

I nodded, childishly wanting to thank her for not making me. But I knew too well that it was inevitable; I'd have to go back to that awful place. Not that night, not when I closed my eyes. That was the eternity after this life, and I – in my guilt-ridden state – only got a short glimpse.

We'd all go there eventually. And stay forever.

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy


	22. Chapter 21: Jack

In the next three days, our small group stayed at the outskirts of the city. We moved from camp to camp sharing supplies with other refugees as we waited for the quarantine to be lifted. There were a lot of nice families who were looking hopeful for the future. Most of them didn't care about who won the war no matter what colors they wore; they simply wanted to return to their homes and their lives.

Although I recovered, nobody pushed me to describe my dream, and I couldn't push myself to return to it. I fought sleep as much as I could that first night in my desperation not to experience that horror once again. Mercifully, when my strength left me and I let the darkness envelope me, I awoke the next morning after a dreamless sleep. The following days allowed me the same reprieve, so I was able to put the dream in the back of my mind while we focused on the immediate future.

By the end of the second day, rumors spread across the camps that the war had come to an end, and there was a new victor working with the police to clean up the mess. I didn't have to say a word; the public had already conspired with the police to assassinate the heads of the losing gangs. They'd already guessed the truth; the dark seeds had spread.

Help from across the region had been coming in. Armored cars drove in convoys from the west and – according to rumors – the east. Helicopters now flew over the city now that no Challengers remained in its walls, both to report the cleanup and to assist with the injured. The heads of Hoenn and Sinnoh had pledged their supplies to help those in need, although they weren't coming for a few more days.

Nobody was making an official statement about the war. Not Sister Anna, not Chief Harmen, not even the President, despite the growing outcry demanding he address the issue. Nobody had seen him since the war began, and people grew suspicious.

But thanks to the growing effort and support, plenty of food and supplies were handed out throughout Route 16. Several stations had been set up to divvy out soup and sandwiches, and some beautiful people had barbecues for those lucky enough to reach them in time. An entire makeshift hospital had been setup just outside the city walls, and injured that couldn't fit into the helicopters – or those who didn't require urgent attention – were rolled out of the city to seek help.

However, although several convoys entered the city, nearly as many left carrying the dead. Hundreds of trucks rolled out carrying multiple corpses during the several days. You could easily tell that there was dead in them; the trucks had blackened windows and carried the unmistakable stench of death. Supposedly, each truck could fit over fifteen bodies neatly inside, and there were far too many trucks to count. The rumored death toll was over fifty thousand, all killed in barely three days.

I believed that rumor; those streets on the front lines were covered in dead. Some piled on top of each other creating small barriers, behind which lay other dead. The fighting Celadon Saviors were essentially exterminated, and most of the Kanto Kings and Mewtwo's Apostles were slain as well. I honestly expected it to be more, considering the sheer amount of firepower I heard as I traveling through the city.

It was strange, honestly… there weren't too many survivors who stayed and fought. Most of the police and some Kanto Kings who surrendered. And then there was me, a kid who got really, really fucking lucky. I was one of, what, less than a thousand survivors? If that? I was part of the two percent. Me and my Moemon. But what was strangest was that hearing that number barely affected me. I expected to be humbled by the number and thankful for my luck, and by all accounts I should've. But I just… barely cared. I didn't care that I didn't care.

And then there were some scary rumors. Stories about the war had spread across the camps. Not only how the Mewtwo Apostle's took down the leaders, but also that the Mewtwo's Apostles should've lost the war until their last push. They were outnumbered and outgunned by a significant margin, yet they pushed back and steamrolled the Kanto Kings in just a few hours. How? Because they got hundreds of reinforcements from nowhere. Hundreds of men and women appeared – according to whom you listen – out of nowhere or from some hidden building along Route 7 to support the Mewtwo's Apostles. Depending on the rumor, they were policemen from Saffron or Cerulean, they were Team Rocket, they were a hidden military organization, they were hidden Mewtwo's Apostles ready to turn the tides of battle. The only fact that nearly everyone agreed on was that the Mewtwo's Apostles wouldn't have won without them; all other facts about these mysterious people were lost in the rumors.

On the third day, Chief Harmen made an official statement on television. A reporter from Kanto News flew into the city to meet with the police chief on top of the Police Station. The young woman nervously stood beside the exhausted but satisfied man and silently held out her microphone. Chief Harmen took the microphone and held it contemplatively before staring at some point beyond the camera.

"As behalf of the citizens of Celadon City, I'm sad to say a tragedy befell numerous citizens over the past week. Several thousand brave men and women slaughtered each other. They all had their reasons; many believed in the principles behind their associations, while many simply wanted to take out their aggressions, and others were innocents forced into a battle they wanted no part in. No matter the reason, the result is the same: a civil war took place this past week.

"I'm sure the tragedy of the First Celadon Civil War – which is an unfortunate name that has somehow stuck – is still fresh in the hearts of us all. The three associations of the Kanto Kings, Celadon Saviors, and Mewtwo's Apostles fought for nearly a month just six years ago, resulting in the loss of six thousand lives. In the end, the brave Challenger Jared was able to broker a peace between the three associations, and there was a tentative and fragile peace throughout the city.

"However, during that month, we the Celadon Police were not able to act as swiftly as we would have wanted, and as a result numerous civilians weren't able to evacuate until far into the war. It was a dangerous, unnecessary process, and we strove to do better.

"I want those of you listening to consider these facts before I state what occurred during the last week. In order to prevent another tragedy, all of you should comprehend the extent of the tragedy. The death total stands at over fifty thousand lives in just seven days." He paused for several moments to let the information sink in. "The Kanto Kings, Celadon Saviors, and Mewtwo's Apostles once again fought for 'control' of the city. The entire city was affected; hundreds of thousands of civilians were evacuated swiftly by the police. But those who stayed to fight cut each other down. All three associations were massacred, and none of the three remain."

He paused again. Quinton and I glanced at each other curiously, wondering what that could mean. Of course, the Kanto Kings and Celadon Saviors probably wouldn't recover, but the heads of the Mewtwo's Apostles were still alive and well. They were hiding something.

"Kevin Monroe, Greg Donavan, and Mary Beth Wilson – the three heads of the three organizations – all perished when the Donavan Tower fell on the second night. The three organizations, lost without their leaders, panicked and turned on each other. In the ensuing chaos, nearly every member of all three organizations fell. Officially, all three have been destroyed.

"It is the wish of I, the Celadon Police, the citizens of Celadon, and the region of Kanto, that these organizations be buried with the dead as a reminder for how dangerous such zealous beliefs can be. These organizations grew and grew into behemoths that couldn't control themselves. We had been attempting to suppress the growing animosity, and we certainly postponed the war for many months. However, even we couldn't stop this war; there were too many people under leaders with too much power.

"We, the Celadon Police, will do what we can to prevent another war. But we implore everyone of Kanto to stop fighting with one another about your beliefs. You can argue and debate and reason with one another, but when it comes to bloodshed of this magnitude, then there is something horribly wrong. This can never happen again. We have to learn from our mistakes.

"As I said, the Kanto Kings, the Celadon Saviors, and Mewtwo's Apostles are no more. We are doing our part to prevent the revival of any of these organizations or any similar. There will be no Third Celadon War."

"The issue of Human-Moemon relations is the center of these politics. It has been an issue for centuries, and it will continue to be an issue unless we take action now. Moemon have been our subordinates for far too long. We have to ensure that we are equal. They cannot be slaves." He paused again. "We will be discussing the issue in the upcoming months, but a decision has to be made soon. That is an issue, however, for another day.

"In three days, most of Celadon City will be livable once more, and we will be bringing in citizens to return to their lives. Many blocks are still being cleaned up and will be separated and heavily guarded. The Moemon Center, Celadon City Casino, and Celadon City Gym will be opened immediately. However, the famous Department Store will be closed for another few weeks for cleanup. The Donavan Tower area will remain as a memorial to the war. We will discuss renovations in a few months.

"Look to the future, citizens of Kanto. Look to a bright, positive future. Let these events be a lesson for us all, but a lesson we learn from to make the coming years better for us all."

The camera turned to the camerawoman, but her words were drowned out by the cheers of the crowd surrounding us. The entire route was ecstatic that soon they'd be able to return to their city. It wasn't long until our classmates called us declaring that they're going to reach Celadon City by the time it opened, that they'd be leaving Vermillion City immediately. That they'd be fighting Erika as soon as they arrived.

Quinton and I broke away from the large crowd and discussed our own plan for the future. We were certainly weaker than most of our classmates; they'd had over a week to train and plan for Erika, and their teams surpassed ours in levels and evolutions. They could beat Erika without a scratch and move on to Fuchsia City without us. They told us that they'd stay and support us, but we couldn't believe them.

So we decided that we'd start training as soon as the city was opened to the public, that we'd support their matches as we trained. We'd get to an appropriate level so that we wouldn't fall behind. Our teams were strong, and we had already discussed strategies against her. We just needed that one push to bring us up to their level.

It wasn't something I wanted to do. I hadn't seen any fighting since the war ended, and I was still accustoming to quiet and peace. I wanted at several times to simply find a quiet town and live out the rest of this competition like Hannah. But my Moemon grew impatient quickly, and they eagerly awaited resuming training.

* * *

Three more days passed, and on that third day the reentry of the city began. Rows of large black trucks parked along the route path to keep people calm and orderly, and numerous large men oversaw the giant crowd. Hundreds of thousands of refugees filed in through the two entrances, and although the process began early in the morning Quinton and I didn't reach the city torii until midday. We were near the center of the crowd and constantly bunched together to fit down the strangely narrow path. Our Moemon – sans Stacy, who had opted to scout ahead and hadn't returned – clutched onto our arms, although they were far more assertive in pushing forward, eager to return.

Once we entered the city, the crowd split off into multiple directions, but it seemed to be no less crowded. We moved down the center road, seeing that the Department Store had been surrounded in police tape and had numerous policemen and strong men in black suits patrolling and surveying us. Most of the police patrolled the streets, directed people toward living arrangements, and answered questions.

Several families stood in front of roped off buildings distraught and helpless. One such single mother and two kids was being consoled by a young officer who recommended a somewhat vacant if ramshackle apartment complex. Just down the road, an older nicely-dressed couple stood in front of a well-kept two-story building and were being told something similar. Instead of being understanding, they looked horrified.

"Our home is perfectly fine!" The man shouted, his face bright red with rage as he pointed a sausage finger at his immaculate home. "There's no damn reason why we shouldn't be allowed to enter!"

"Please, sir, it's protocol!" The young officer pleaded, waving his hands in front of his face as if scared the man was going to strike him. "The entire block is being cleaned! We haven't-"

"Use your damn eyes and look at our house!" The man screamed. "There isn't a damn spot on it! We don't need you and your cops stomping through our house looking for things to steal! We paid good money for this house, and we're going to sure as hell enter it!"

We didn't overhear them for much longer, as the wave of the crowd pushed us farther west. Along the way, we noticed several more blocks had been roped off. People in hazmat suits walked up and down the streets blasting the walls, cars, and street with powerful hoses. Red water flowed into the sewers.

Eventually, we reached the Moemon Center with the intent of ensuring that our Moemon get checked out. However, the building was overwhelmingly crowded as people pushed forward to enter and pushed to leave. The few officers assigned to guard the area radioed for backup to control the gigantic crowd.

"Well shit," I muttered, watching with a mixture of annoyance and amusement as the crowd shouted at itself. "Guess we'll have to wait for that. What should we do now?"

I looked back at Quinton, who fiddled with his watch. He looked up slightly, trying to comprehend my simple question.

"Where are the others?" I prodded. "I haven't looked."

"You've been looking everywhere," Quinton noted. "Are you feeling okay?"

"Better than I expected," I admitted. That week outside the city greatly helped my eventual return. I saw streets where once hundreds of bodies piled on top of one another. I saw the building where I witnessed the death of dozens of men who protected me. I saw buildings still covered in dried blood, and I saw buildings that had been obliterated by explosions. Nothing affected me.

"I'm sorry if I'm being presumptuous, but you're not getting flashbacks? Nothing's triggering anything?"

"You're not being presumptuous," I replied. "I expected to have a hard time passing some of these buildings. But no, nothing."

Quinton looked unconvinced, but he dropped the issue. "The others are scattered around the city. The closest is Jack."

"Just Jack?"

"He's not with Rebecca, no."

"Scandalous," I said.

Quinton smirked. "He's just down the street, if you wanted to speak with him."

I nodded. Jack and I barely spoke, but he was friendly enough. Sure, he was one of the classmates who sided against me in Vermillion City, but that was an issue that felt years old.

We saw him shortly after and waved him down. The moment he saw us, he broke into a wide grin and pulled me into a hug.

"Arthur! Quinton! It's great to see you again, guys," he said. His eyes paused to study me, but then he turned to Quinton and shook his hand. "I'm glad you two are okay."

"Nice to get such a warm greeting," Quinton replied. He looked behind Jack strangely. "Your Moemon are in their Moeballs?"

Jack nodded grimly. "We discussed it before entering the city. We wanted to stay under the radar, you know, with so many people after us. When we saw that giant crowd of people filing into the city, we recalled all of our Moemon. It was so strong, we were separated by that giant crowd, and I haven't seen any of them since; I couldn't imagine how our Moemon would fare."

"It was that long ago?" I noted.

"I'm being dramatic," Jack said, shrugging innocently.

I looked back at our teams. "Ours fared well enough."

"You probably had a smaller crowd," Jack replied dismissively. "Or your Moemon are stronger, which could very well still be the case."

"You've had a week of training on us," I argued.

Jack smiled knowingly. "And you know how to battle. You also have a full team, according to my watch. Rebecca and I are just trying to survive; it's a miracle both of us are still here."

"Where is she, by the way?" I asked.

Jack shrugged. "Like I said, I lost her in the crowd." He noticed my strange look and clarified. "We're on good terms, by the way. Don't go making assumptions. We'll find each other soon enough."

"I just didn't expect you to be so indifferent toward losing your girlfriend in a crowd of strangers."

"She's a stronger fighter than me. She probably beat me into the city, and I just passed her without seeing her."

"Well, you two are on good terms still, right?"

"Of course!" Jack said quickly. His eyes, however, said otherwise. He saw us piercing through him and frowned guiltily. "I don't want to talk about it, alright? It's been a long journey. I've been looking over my shoulder ever since that Hunter attacked Maggie."

"Nobody is concerned with Moemon battles or Challengers at a time like this," stated Quinton. "Not even the Hunters."

"Yeah…" Jack conceded weakly. "But I'd rather us be safe, you know?" Jack eyed me carefully. "I have to say, you look exhausted."

"I was awake for a long time," I admitted. "Is it really that bad?"

Jack nodded, frowning. "How are you doing, seriously? I'm here if you need anyone to talk to." He paused, hesitantly. "I know when we last saw each other it wasn't on the best terms. Hell, I barely think we've talked since Cerulean City. But I'll be here for you now. After what you've been through…"

I smiled appreciatively. "Jack, thank you. I'm still trying to adjust, but I'm making progress."

Jack seemed unconvinced. "I feel awful, though. I didn't take your side, and I didn't hear you out."

"I don't blame you or anyone for that."

"Still, I've felt bad about it ever since you two left."

"It was a shitty situation I put everyone in."

"We made it worse."

"It doesn't matter now," I said firmly. Jack still looked unconvinced, so I reiterated. "Jack, seriously, it really doesn't matter anymore. I don't care what side anyone took on the issue; I don't care what anyone said. I don't want anyone feeling bad about their decisions."

"But I'm still going to feel awful."

"Then feel awful!" I said, smiling. "I appreciate it. Really, I do. I just want to look forward, not back."

He nodded slowly, still with that strange look on his face as if I didn't understand what I just said. Nevertheless, he turned to Quinton. "That was brave of you to go with him. I'm sorry about your… Minn…" He paused, struggling with the name. "Your Moemon that you lost."

"Minnie," Quinton corrected him. "And thank you, Jack. It was…"

Jack waved his hands and shook his head rapidly. "You don't need to explain. You faced a Bounty Hunter, right? You survived. That's impressive enough. And the rest of your Moemon are okay? You only have five… are you staying with five?"

"I hadn't decided on my sixth," said Quinton. "Then the war happened, and I couldn't reach a PC." He pointed at the giant crowd. "I had planned on retrieving her, but I'll have to wait."

"I get why you don't want to fight that. It looks like a madhouse." Jack nodded.

"And your team?" I asked. "How are they? Your Gabite?"

"Gabriella is incredibly strong," Jack answered, smiling proudly. "She'll carry me to victory!"

"How is she?" I repeated insistently.

"Uh… she's healthy. She's happy. She loves me. The whole team loves each other, and we all get along."

I nodded approvingly. That was the answer I wanted. "Sorry for pressing like that. Strength is one thing, sure, but it's better for everyone if you all get along."

"You've grown so wise," Jack joked. "You really have aged several years."

"Quit saying that," I muttered. "I don't want to wake up in our classroom looking like I belong in the workforce. I don't even want to think about how we're going to look when we return."

"Best not to think about," said Quinton dismissively. He nodded at Jack. "Are you going to face Erika soon?"

"I think so… we're strong enough, right?"

"All of us are strong enough to beat her," Quinton confirmed, giving me a side glance that meant he was including me. "But to do so without losses takes planning, which I hope you have all been doing."

"Uh, I might need some advice," Jack muttered. "Hope you'll still be willing to give it. You haven't said you've forgiven me."

"You haven't asked."

"Do you forgive me for what I did in Vermillion City?"

Quinton smiled brightly. "Bygones, Jack. I'd be glad to give you any advice I can before your gym battle."

Jack looked relieved. "Rebecca will be happy, too. She got really excited that we'd be traveling again; she was growing bored of Vermillion City. I couldn't get enough of it, though, but we had to move on."

"And you're sure you'll be staying here for a few days?" I asked.

"I will. I honestly can't say anything about the others."

Quinton glanced at his watch, and then back at me. "Sam's already at the gym."

I shook my head. "Of course he is."

"You're not surprised?" Jack asked.

"Rebecca hasn't been the only one itching to travel," said Quinton. "And not everyone is as willing to stay behind as you are. I have no doubt that some of our classmates will be traveling ahead of us."

"We promised we'd stay a few days," said Jack defensively. "Sam might just be-"

I held out my hand, interrupting him. "No need to make excuses for him, Jack. He'll make his choice eventually. Maybe we don't have anything to worry about."

"Or maybe he's just going to be an asshole," added Quinton.

"He's welcome to it. I'd be glad to have the target on someone's head for a change." I sighed. "It's a terrible fucking feeling, I'll tell you. I hope he likes it."

"We could still talk to him before he fights the Gym Leader," said Jack. "Make sure he's not planning on leaving without us."

I looked at Quinton and shrugged. Everyone else scattered around the city, and I didn't have much desire to repeat the same conversation with all of them individually.

"I'm okay with that. Are you coming with us or waiting for Rebecca?" I asked.

"I'll join you guys," answered Jack. And the three of us headed south toward the Celadon Gym, wondering if we were simply paranoid or Sam truly was planning on abandoning us for the goal of the Championship.

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy

Jack:

Gabriella the Gabite

Amy the Ambipom

Evelynn the Loudred

Nicolle the Ninetales

Charlotte the Chatot


	23. Chapter 22: Sam

We traveled southwest, dodging around the various growing crowds scattered across the city. The western side had been untouched by the war, and the further south we traveled the more calm and peaceful and normal life seemed. Citizens migrated back to their original homes without trouble, reuniting with neighbors to gossip and recount their wartime struggles. Nobody paid our group any mind, and eventually we reached the southern wall

The Celadon Gym was hidden away in a small forest. From the city streets, the building itself was only just visible under the shadow of the massive trees surrounding it. The only entrance was through a dirt path that weaved around several flower patches covering a lush green field.

A young female gardener knelt in a flower patch as we approached, her watering can resting next to her. As we stepped onto the path, she turned around and eyed us. She gave us a disappointed look, shook her head, and silently went back to her plants. The three of us exchanged a strange look in response, but we didn't inquire further and continued to the gym.

The glass doors slid open as we approached, and warm, scented air blasted us. The inside was as beautiful as the outside; an indoor garden stretched throughout the building. A rainbow of flowers covered the ground, and strange exotic plants sprouted from vines crawling up the walls. Several more young gardeners tended to the plants, and none of them paid us any attention as we walked through the garden. Trees formed a wall separating the garden from the arena, where sounds of battle echoed.

We passed through the wall as the final Moemon fell. Sam's Sceptile stood proud and victorious over her downed opponent. The opponent's trainer, another young gardener, sighed and recalled her.

"Congratulations," she said sadly. "You've won. If you wish to challenge Erika, she should be ready in an hour."

Sam patted his Sceptile on the shoulder, sharing the same proud expression. "I'll do just that. Thank you."

Several rows of bleachers stretched across the far end of the gym, but they were empty aside from three more gardeners. All of them shared the same look of disappointment as the match ended, clapping politely but showing no joy.

As Sam congratulated his team, he saw us through the trees, and his face stoned. We walked up to him, and he stepped back defensively.

"Didn't expect you guys to get here," he admitted. "Were you planning on challenging Erika too?"

All of us shook our heads. "Of course not, Sam," said Jack. "We just got here. We have plenty of time."

Sam's eyes darted to me and Quinton. "Do we?" He asked. "How long do we have until this gym's filled with challengers?"

Jack looked around at the nearly empty gym, and then shrugged mockingly. "You're right. It's getting packed."

"They're all at the Moemon Center," said Sam. "Once they get healed up, they'll come straight here. I beat them to it."

"Aren't your Moemon injured?" Quinton inquired. "Are you not going to heal them before your battle?"

"I came prepared," answered Sam. "But my team destroyed those trainers. We've barely taken a scratch."

I eyed the Sceptile, the woman who stood taller than her trainer. She indeed looked completely uninjured; she seemed one of the most powerful and formidable Moemon I'd seen. She'd changed so much from the Treecko in Pallet Town, in size and power if nothing else.

"That's great," said Quinton joylessly. "And what will you do once you beat Erika?"

Sam's eyes flashed guiltily. "I'm going to stay for a few days, I promise. I just wanted to make sure that when we decide to leave, I'm ready."

"I doubt we're going to leave anyone behind," said Jack, suspiciously. "This is a huge city. We have plenty to explore."

"Not as much as we should. Half of it is roped off."

"It's a big half."

"We spent way too long in Vermillion City," argued Sam. "I got tired of walking down those same beaches over and over."

Jack smiled amusedly. "Did you? I couldn't get enough of them. The town was beautiful; I could've stayed for months!"

"Then go back. Let the rest of us compete."

"The competition isn't everything," said Jack. "We passed by so many sights rushing to get here on time. We didn't even get to go to Lavender Town's amusement park!"

"Like I said: go back if you want," said Sam. "None of us is holding you back."

"Enough arguing," I said, stepping in between them. I looked to Sam accusingly. "We know why you're rushing ahead."

"Do you, now?" Sam asked. "Experienced it yourself, and now you don't like that someone else is doing it?"

"Sam, please, that's uncalled for," said Quinton. "We had a very good reason for doing it."

"I get the reason, believe me. But we all spent days wondering if you were going to leave us all behind."

"How about days wondering if I was going to survive?" I demanded. "I think that should take priority over the competition."

Sam nodded. "Right… right, sorry," he conceded.

"You've spent too much time with Eric," I muttered. "He grew way too suspicious of all of my actions."

Sam's yielding expression immediately darkened at the mention of Eric's name. "And we all know exactly what happened to him."

"Yeah," I said, glaring back at him. "He survived. Because of me."

"Because of you."

Quinton then stepped in between us, sighing slightly. "Sam, we don't approve, but we understand if you want to go ahead. It's frankly a miracle we – or at least you – have all stayed together halfway into this competition. If, now that the tragedy is over, you want to race ahead, then we can't stop you."

"We can," I said, darker than I'd intended. I immediately regretted those words, but they'd been said. An ineffectual, "Sorry, I didn't mean it" left my lips, but the damage had been done.

Sam stepped back to his Moemon's side and shook his head slowly. "Don't do anything you'll regret, Arthur. If I want to leave, I will. I don't have to wait for you two to catch up now that you're finally in last place."

"Sam, come on, you're being unreasonable," argued Jack. "We need to stay for a few days and recover from the trip. We walked nearly two days straight getting here."

"And, Jack, I'll recover once I've gotten the badge," said Sam. He looked at me as he continued, "A bit of security in case something unexpected happens."

He whispered for his Moemon to follow him, and he walked past us out of the gym. Jack watched him leave, his uncertainty on his face as he debated chasing after him. Quinton and I simply shared knowing looks.

"You'll never control your mouth," stated Quinton.

I ignored that. "He really is too much like Eric for my taste."

"You should learn from your mistakes and stay away from him."

That I couldn't ignore. I nodded. "You're right… I should. I shouldn't talk to him. I just need to let him go."

"I don't know if I can," Jack muttered. "You both were right; he's going to leave. I mean, he was just as anxious as Rebecca about leaving, but I really didn't expect him to just want to pass this giant place without exploring."

"I did enough exploring," I said bitterly. "It's not that great."

Jack smiled sympathetically. "But Sam just got here. He really cares too much about winning."

"In his defense, I'm sure most of us care a lot about winning," said Quinton.

"Yes, but you're going to stay a few days and explore, right? That's what matters!"

"Sure, but not by choice," admitted Quinton. He nodded at me. "If Arthur was ready, I'd leave tonight. I'm not one for big cities."

Jack frowned. "That's such a sad attitude to have. But fine-" he pulled up his watch, a name flashing on the screen. "Bek's calling. I'll see you around." He gave us a smile and a small wave and exited the gym.

"We solved nothing," I noted. "We might've made things worse."

"His mind was set before he arrived," replied Quinton, unaffected. "We didn't make the situation worse. At the very least, we called attention to Sam, so Jack will help spread the word. Perhaps the others will speak to him."

"Or join him," I countered.

Quinton smirked bitterly. "More than likely. It's of little concern; this competition is five weeks old, and none of us has four badges. If we fall behind at this point, we have time to catch up." He paused, waiting for a response, and then continued with more enthusiasm than I'd liked. "Of course, if they're ahead of us when the Hunters strike, then they'll be targeted first."

I looked at him uncertainly. "If the Hunters attack, they'll attack us all simultaneously so we can't warn anyone. It doesn't matter who's ahead." I paused. "Have you told the others about what Hunter G told you?"

"Or what Hunter X told you?" Quinton countered, and my heart panged guiltily. He didn't pause on the accusation and continued quickly. "No, I haven't. No one knows what the Bounty Hunters are planning except us." Now he paused. "Are you suggesting we tell them?"

I'd barely thought about it. I hesitated. "See… on one hand, fuck the competition… the fewer Moemon who die the better…"

"On the other hand," Quinton continued for me. "You still want to win."

"We're in the wrong if we keep this to ourselves," I insisted, voicing my struggle. "We'd be condemning those Moemon to death."

"But if the Bounty Hunters attack, and they're as strong as Hunter M, then it doesn't matter what happens. All of those Moemon will die no matter what we tell them."

"But we don't know that," I argued. "Our warning could save some from death."

"We all know the Bounty Hunters are on us. They're fully aware they could be attacked at any second. They'll plan all they can, but the only information we could give them is that we'll be attacked when they'll be attacked."

"And that the Hunters are stalking us, are aware of us all – including Hannah – and that they're making a plan."

"All information they could reasonably deduce from what they've been told."

"Then we should tell them so they don't have to deduce."

Quinton held his arms forward, motioning for me to proceed. "Then tell them."

I kept my arms at my sides; my body refused to tell them. "I don't want to," I said weakly.

"That's all you need," said Quinton, nodding. "I certainly wasn't going to."

"I got that," I muttered, unable to hide my overwhelming guilt. I studied him. "When did you become so selfish?"

"When they outed us as threats for racing ahead in a race," he explained. "And then faked their sympathy when we had to stop." He studied me. "When did you?"

"I wasn't…" I tried lying, but I couldn't deceive him. I continued venomously, "When they threatened to attack Olivia when she was at her weakest. That's when I stopped caring." I knew she needed to hear that; I could feel her beaming at me.

"Understandable," Quinton nodded. He gave me a knowing smile. "Not all of them are bad, sure, but they'd attack us the moment we threatened to push ahead of them. So long as we aren't the threats, we're safe from them."

"Fuck this competition," I repeated, sighing. "I want to start counting the days until this ends and we can go back to normal."

* * *

That conversation with Quinton was incredibly freeing. I was glad he thought similarly to me. We talked and joked and smiled with the others, but it was just an act to keep them pacified. The two of us separated ourselves in Vermillion City, and no matter how long we stayed with them, that separation was permanent. Most of our classmates were great, and they defended us, but that wall was still built between us.

Most of our classmates gathered at the Donavan Tower ruins, so that was our next destination. We traveled across town once more, taking a similar path through the pleasant, untouched district before entering the streets ravaged by war. We found them at the police barricade amongst a small crowd surveying the construction.

For as many people that congested the road, this part of the city was eerily quiet. Many people seemed to be in mourning; those who weren't awestruck by the sight of the fallen skyscraper stared at the ground. The obvious dichotomy showed that Chief Harmen's optimistic words wouldn't destroy the ideals of the Celadon gangs so easily. The faces in the crowd either mixed horror and grief if they wore shades of red, and shock and satisfaction if they didn't.

We pushed passed the crowd to the front, sneaking next to them as they stared in awe. Max was the first to notice, since I nudged him in the shoulder to get his attention. He turned to me, blinked in confusion, and then broke into a wide grin.

"Arthur!" He cried, breaking the silence, and pulled me into a hug. "It's so great to see you!"

I could feel the crowd shifting in our direction, and I secretly hated that he decided to yell at that moment. "Great to see you too, Max," I said, hiding my disdain. "Maybe a bit quieter, next time?"

Max gasped in horror as he turned to the crowd. "Sorry, everyone. We've just reunited after a long time. You understand…"

That convinced them. Although he got a few scattered glares, the rest turned back to the tower, and we managed to pull ourselves away. I wasn't surprised that most of them gathered at the ruins; most of the previous week the gossip had been on the destruction of the tower. It was the sight to see.

We moved a fair distance away until we reached a clear intersection, and then we pulled ourselves in for a group hug. It was great to see them all smiling and relieved, and their faces filled with pride and upon seeing us. It seemed like they truly didn't feel any animosity toward us. We didn't have to feign our happiness for the most part, since Sam was still near the gym. I still bit back a grimace as I shook Connor and Drew's hands, but that passed quickly.

"This is an amazing city," Max noted, grinning. "It's such a shame we couldn't see it before all this destruction."

"It was beautiful," confirmed Quinton. "But it was also unnerving; it certainly wasn't a safe place like Vermillion City."

"Mayor Porter warned us of the dangers before he left," said Laura sadly. "By the way, I'm really sorry you two had to be part of that."

"Eric took it the worst," said Quinton, when I didn't respond.

"Come on, man, it had to have been hard on you," Thomas insisted. "We all saw in on TV; it was bad enough then."

"Before the camera cut off, anyway," added Drew.

"It was awful," Quinton confirmed simply.

"I faced worse," I said calmly. They stared at me awkwardly, unsure how to respond. "It's behind us. I already heard it from Jack; I don't need to hear it from you guys as well. It's not worth talking about."

"That's understandable," said Max, smiling sympathetically. "But if you want to talk – and I mean really talk - I'll listen."

"They're making a memorial for him," said Laura. "In Vermillion. To honor his memory."

"They're also having a funeral for him in a couple days," added Max.

"He really was a good guy," said Drew pointedly, studying me.

I stared at him before grunting. "Yeah, I figured that out when I saw his head blow off."

More stares. "Arthur?" Garrett asked.

I faked an unconvincing smile. "Just a joke. I'm fine. Ignore me."

Something that I had thought about multiple times in that week was that the war began and ended with a sniper shooting an important leader from nowhere. Nowhere in that entire war did I hear a single crack of a powerful sniper rifle except at the beginning and the end. Whoever killed Mayor Porter killed Marcus; that was a fact. Marcus deserved it. Mayor Porter was innocent, and he was martyred for the war. Of course I was irritated. Whether out of guilt or out of grief, I couldn't say, but Drew's smug reminder of my suspicion made me feel like shit.

They tried their best to change the subject. "Sam's already fighting Erika," Quinton noted. "We talked to him before coming here. He was adamant about leaving soon."

None of them looked surprised; they glanced at each other nervously. "He did mention it," said Thomas vaguely.

"What about the rest of you?" I asked. Nobody answered, so I put on a more genuine smile. "Guys, there's no need to keep secrets from us. We'll find out eventually, anyway."

There was a moment of hesitation before Max stepped forward. "Arthur… Quinton… we know you two had to wait a week. But we spent that week trapped in one city. All we could do is train."

"You're dancing around the subject," I noted. "We won't judge whatever your answer."

"We're all planning on facing Erika soon," said Laura gently. "Once we've explored the city. Maybe by tomorrow, we'll all have our badges."

"And then we're planning on leaving shortly after," added Connor. "Most of us aren't going to wait for you."

Quinton and I exchanged a glance; our suspicions were confirmed. "That's fine," said Quinton. "We understand. We can't stop you, nor can we expect you to stay behind with us."

"You'll catch up," said Max, smiling reassuringly.

"Not that we want you to," added Thomas jokingly. "But you two are better than us in general."

"Some of us will stay a few days," said Garrett. "But we can't stay too long, or we'll fall behind."

"How long do you think Sam will stay?" I asked. I looked at my watch; Sam had already beaten two of Erika's Moemon flawlessly. "I honestly expect him to leave by the end of the day."

"That's his choice," said Drew, shrugging. "We won't stop him either."

"But will you join him?"

Drew and I stared at each other for a moment before he smiled knowingly. "You got me; I'm facing Erika next."

"Then best of luck," I replied. There wasn't much I could say to that. Drew's smile dropped once he felt the others' disapproval. I decided to poke at his wound in return. "How's Molly?"

"Apparently beating all of us," Drew muttered, hurt.

In the week, Molly had somehow received an entirely new team of incredibly strong Moemon and had traveled to Saffron City. She had been in the Silph Company building and – as far as we knew – hadn't moved. Her starter was nowhere to be seen; she didn't even seem to own it anymore. It wasn't in her team nor her reserves. Yet she hadn't received a single gym badge nor had she traveled beyond the routes connecting to Cerulean City and Saffron City.

"But she hasn't talked to any of you?" I persisted, more genuinely. Nobody replied. "What the fuck is with her?"

"She clearly found something better to do with her time than travel with her friends," said Drew bitterly. "Or keep her team. She released them all."

"Her poor Bayleef," said Laura sadly. "She was such a sweet Moemon, too."

"Should've given it to one of us if she was just going to abandon it," muttered Garrett.

"She probably didn't know she was going to release it," suggested Max. "Maybe it was forced upon her."

"Oh yeah," Drew muttered sardonically. "Her team of incredibly strong, well-trained Moemon was just such a terrible punishment. Her sudden ability to destroy us all is just horrible."

"Ease off him," I scolded as Max stared with shock and regret. Drew turned his attention to me, fuming. "He doesn't deserve to be talked to like that."

Drew blinked, took a deep breath, and nodded. He looked back at Max regretfully. "I'm sorry. I'm just… frustrated."

Max smiled sympathetically. "It's okay, Drew; I know why you're mad. We're all upset that Molly's treating us like this. If only she would just talk to us, we'd at least understand why she refuses to travel with us."

"If only," Drew repeated absentmindedly. "Listen guys, it was a good chat, but I need to blow off some steam." He gave us a short wave and walked off.

As he disappeared into the crowd, we noticed that a bunch of men in blue pushed their way to the front of the ruins. The men themselves weren't memorable, but they carried themselves with conceit and smugness. They shoved women in pink and men in green, although they stepped cautiously around the several other blues near the front.

"Those fucking gangs," I muttered, shaking my head. The others noticed this and turned to me curiously. "The blues won the war, technically, so they think they're better than anyone else." I nodded at the men. "I bet they didn't even fight; they just expect the rest to move out of the way just because they happened to wear the winning colors."

"Bunch of scum," added Garrett, grimacing.

"I thought Chief Harmen said the associations were all disbanded," said Laura. "Their shirts don't matter."

"Exactly," I said. "But they think they do."

I wanted to continue ranting, but shouts from the crowd distracted us. Another small group of men in red had attempted to push to the front, but the men in blue blocked them off. The crowd spread out as the two groups started to brawl, punching and kicking and shoving each other. Almost immediately, police sprinted from the tower ruins and nearby streets to break up the fight. They grabbed men and shoved them to the ground; they pointed tasers and pistols at others, screaming at them to disperse or be arrested.

"Hey, get off me!" A man in blue screamed from beneath a police officer's boot. "We're Mewtwo's Apostles! You helped us win! Why are you doing this to us?"

The officer wasn't influenced and simply handcuffed him right on the ground. The other men, despite protesting furiously, eventually abandoned their partner. Other men in red and blue were also arrested and led away. Eventually, the crowd quieted from the excitement and turned their attention back to the tower.

"At least the police are trying to keep the peace," said Quinton.

"Don't want to start another war," I said bitterly. "It's going to take more than just arresting a few assholes, though. I really hope they're doing this right."

"The city was segregated by color, right?" asked Thomas.

"Not quite; the three gangs controlled everything," corrected Quinton. "And most citizens were part of the three gangs. Hence why you see everyone wearing red, blue, or green. Now the gangs are – in theory – but the ideals still remain. It's still red against blue against green, even if no one can enforce it."

"People are just angry, lost, and confused without leaders to look up to," I added.

"So many people have to be so scared," said Max. "It seems like these gangs were some people's entire lives. Now the gangs are gone… they have nothing."

"Doesn't even seem like the war was worth it if there's still going to be animosity," said Garrett. "They're still going to fight. They'll never agree."

"Things are going to get worse before they get better," suggested Connor. "There'll be fights now, but when everyone's calmed down and emotions aren't as high, they'll come to terms with their loss."

"I hope you're right, Connor," said Quinton, as another small group started shouting within the crowd. It seemed that a group of greens had accidentally pushed a blue. "This is not a city I wish to stay in much longer."

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy


	24. Chapter 23: Thomas

With most of them having walked straight from the eastern entrance to the fallen Donavan tower, they eventually decided to simply walk around the city for the rest of the afternoon. With nothing else to do, and wanting to spend time with our classmates, Quinton and I accompanied them. We moved south toward the casino, amusedly noting it was packed with so many people that a line extended down the block. It was here that we met up with Jack and Rebecca, and together we all continued our way south.

Shortly after leaving the casino, we started to get strange looks from passersby. Some noted us with fear, while others stared at us curiously. I felt Thomas nudge my side and stopped, staring at him confusedly.

He nodded at two policemen, who were watching us intently. I frowned, studying them but noticing little interesting about them; they simply appeared to be two gruff, old men in uniform.

"Look at their hats," Thomas pointed out, as the rest of our classmates stopped to watch us. I noticed a hint of fear in his voice.

A blue droplet was emblazoned on their hats. I knew immediately what they represented. "Cerulean City," I said.

Thomas nodded slowly, and as I looked back at him I saw the fear wasn't only in his voice. "Dude, why are they watching us?"

They hadn't looked away from us; despite numerous people walking past them their eyes trained on us. "They don't have a good reason," I muttered. "They might recognize us. They might recognize me."

"Or me," Thomas mumbled. "Call me crazy, but I think one of those men was one of the officers who pulled a gun on us."

I looked back at the officers, but I couldn't recognize them. Maybe I'd blocked that terrible memory out of my mind; maybe too many worse memories had taken its place. I took Thomas' word as truth. "So let's avoid them."

"They know we're Challengers, man," Thomas whispered. He glanced at the Moemon surrounding me. "If they tell anyone… we'll have the whole city after us."

I debated telling him he was paranoid, but I could see the desperation in his eyes; he was pleading with me. "Okay, I understand," I promised. I looked back at Quinton. "Hey man, let's recall our Moemon."

"Again?" Christine moaned, clutching my arm and pouting. "But we talked about this!"

I frowned at her. "We've been getting looks from other people anyway," I reminded her. We were only getting those looks because there were so many of us traveling together. Quinton and I didn't notice anyone giving us a second glance while we were alone. Even when we were with Jack. But there were nearly a dozen Challengers together, and such a large group accompanied by eleven more Moemon was going to gather attention. "It'll only be temporary."

Christine opened her mouth to argue, but Olivia clamped a hand firmly on her shoulder. Silently, Christine nodded, and our Moemon allowed themselves to be recalled into their Moeballs.

Thomas and I glanced back at the officers. They still watched us, their curiosity turning to suspicion.

"Let's go," I muttered. "We aren't going to convince them of anything."

"They better not arrest us again," Thomas added. "I don't want to get thrown in jail." He nudged me, smiling slightly. "But thanks for understanding; I appreciate it."

"I was there with you, man," I replied. "I don't want to get arrested either. But I don't think they have that power here; they're just here to keep the peace."

"God I hope you're right."

It wasn't long afterward that Max received a call from Sam. Max ran to the side of a building and motioned for us to follow before answering.

"Hey, Sam," Max said warmly. "How're you doing? We saw you're at the gym. We're actually heading there-"

"Max!" Sam shouted excitedly, interrupting him. "I did it! I beat Erika! Flawlessly! I got the badge!"

"Congratulations!" Max cheered, grinning at all of us. "We're so proud of you!"

"Great job, Sam!" added Connor.

"So what're you going to do now that you're winning?" asked Garrett.

"I don't know," Sam lied, faking confusion, then he switched back to excited babble. "I'm just so… so overwhelmed! Like, it got close there. I mean, Skylar really got low on health… lower than I was comfortable with. So I had to replace her. But eventually we won. It was a lot tougher than I expected, and I thought we were really prepared. Just… just be careful when you guys do it, alright."

"We promise, okay," Max said seriously. "Your Moemon are all alright, though?"

"We all made it!" Sam confirmed.

"You didn't answer Garrett's question," I said pointedly. "What're you going to do now?"

Sam paused. "I don't know, Arthur. Don't ruin my good mood. Let me enjoy this."

I got some confused looks from the others, so I conceded, stepping back to let the others congratulate him. However, before anyone else could speak, Sam's voice chirped, "Oh, Drew! Good to see you here!" And then he hung up.

Max blinked, staring at his watch strangely. "Huh… that was sudden."

I glanced at Thomas. "Drew and Sam?"

Thomas shrugged. "I didn't notice them talking much."

"It does makes sense, though," admitted Laura. "They're the strongest of us."

"I'd disagree with that," said Garrett.

"But if they decide to leave soon, they'll have a huge lead," muttered Connor. "Damn it! That puts us in an awful situation!"

Max glanced at him curiously. "Does it really? They can race ahead, but we can easily catch up."

"Can we? They're stronger than us already; if they get ahead, they'll just get further ahead."

"They'll have to slow down eventually," countered Quinton. "They will encounter trouble, being ahead. It's the burden of winning; they attract attention."

I scoffed. "Yeah… how many Hunters have we faced while ahead? Technically three?"

"Between the two of us, yes. There's no glory in leading."

"Maybe you two just have bad luck," Connor suggested. "Or you attract attention."

I smirked bitterly. "Both of those are true. Doesn't mean they'll have better luck."

"You two need to stop being so cynical," scolded Max. "If they're ready, they deserve to move ahead. The only thing keeping us here is faith in our Moemon to defeat the gym leader."

"Levels do mean very little," I admitted.

"But the difference between a fully evolved Moemon and a baby is substantial," countered Quinton.

"I still want to do some training here," Laura confirmed. "My Tori hasn't fully evolved. It's really close, though!"

"I spent a lot of time admiring Vermillion City," said Rebecca. "I'd still like to train as well."

Thomas grinned and patted my shoulder. "So don't you two worry your heads. You lost a week, but you won't be alone here."

We continued toward the gym, reaching it as Drew faced the trainers inside. Sam hadn't left, no doubt watching from the stands. As we admired the beautiful gardens and the beautiful women tending to them, we debated joining Sam to watch the fight or continue our journey around the city. Satisfyingly, we decided unanimously to ignore the pair and travel West.

There was a significant crowd of people that gathered along a seemingly innocuous street. They scrambled to watch several officers scavenging the burnt wreckage of a destroyed house. Their confusion caught our attention and forced us to detour. We moved our way through the crowd to get a closer view of the ashes.

I felt a tinge of familiarity as I approached the house. It was strange; I didn't recognize anything else about the street. It was simply another series of houses barely touched by the war. The only sign that anything had been affected was the pile of timber, so why was this so familiar to me? I looked up at the nearby apartments – somehow untouched by the flames – and only felt more déjà vu.

I reached the front of the crowd first, motivated by curiosity to nearly shove my way forward. Six officers wearing gloves stepped gingerly through the remains, stopping occasionally to pick up a charred object before setting it down again, disappointed. I only vaguely recognized five of the officers, but the sixth caught my attention.

"Miles!" I shouted, debating stepping over the police line. "Officer Miles!"

The old Assistant Chief heard his name above the crowd and glanced up curiously. He surveyed the crowd until his eyes fell on me, and they flashed with recognition and a bit of fear. He quickly shook off the fear and motioned me forward, and I apologized quickly to Thomas beside me as I crossed the police lines.

The house had long since cooled down; whatever flames that burnt this house down died ages ago. But not before the war; I never passed anything like this house before arriving at Celadon City. I stared at the blackened wooden flooring, trying to determine anything that I recognized. I had to turn left to reach Miles, but before doing so my hands intuitively tried to push against a staircase that no longer existed. I paused, trying to keep from falling, wondering why I just did that. I looked behind me at this invisible staircase, and then traced the floor to a nonexistent wall.

Then it hit me. The horribly thin, claustrophobic hallway that housed the rotted stench of old wood and decay that permeated the smell of smoke. This was the Donavan House! The one that Karen hauled me away into before that final assault. But how had it burned… It was so decayed that it could've fallen, but it hadn't looked flammable; it had been too moist for that.

I maneuvered my way around more piles of debris whose layout completely contradicted with the foundation that I recalled. A large pile rested right where the doorway to the alcove should have stood, while there was little wood surrounding it. The confusion almost convinced me that I was wrong and it was simply another house.

Then I reached Miles, and he noted the recognition in my eyes. "This is the Donavan House," he confirmed regretfully. "The last reminder of Greg's legacy."

I absentmindedly watched the large abnormal pile as though it was somehow going to move back into a place that made sense. I muttered a distracted, "Is that right?"

"Son…" Assistant Chief Miles said carefully. "I understand you've been through a lot… if this is too much, we can talk another time."

"No, it's fine," I said, shaking my head slightly and regaining my concentration. "You're… uh… sure this is Karen and Greg's house?"

"Karen?" Miles repeated, confused. "Karen never lived here. This was Greg's childhood home. And yes, we're sure. We've watched this place for decades."

"That right?" I muttered amusedly. "This awful place?"

Miles eyed me carefully. "True, it was no summer home even while it stood. But Greg made sure nobody touched it. He even tasked officers with reporting to him of its condition."

"How long ago did it burn?" I asked, kicking a small pile and watching parts of it crumble. "It's cold."

"It was still standing before the war began," Miles replied. "Some of my men confirmed that they saw it on the morning of the final day. By the end of the night, we saw the flames licking the sky."

I nodded. I could've narrowed that timeframe even further, but I didn't know what I should divulge to him. After all, I'd already been accused of destroying part of Greg's legacy. I was one of the last to see his childhood home intact; that was a coincidence that wouldn't go unnoticed.

"I'm surprised it took so long to clean up the wreckage," I admitted.

Miles frowned disappointedly, and exasperation filled his voice as he ranted. "Son, we don't have the men to afford this much effort. Most of our officers have spent that last week hauling dead bodies through the streets. It's been long, arduous, and heartbreaking for our younger officers. Even the veterans like Chief Harmen and myself have been affected. Most officers haven't gotten more than four hours of rest all week. Even the extra men aren't enough. We're far behind schedule, and it's a miracle we've made even parts of this city livable!"

He was breathing heavily by the end, his eyes wide as they betrayed the incredible stress his body was holding in. It took him a moment to realize he'd dropped his façade, and he took a deep breath and adjusted his hat.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have spoken like that to you."

I blinked. "It's… fine, sir. I shouldn't have said what I said either. I'm sure it's been hard."

"More than you know," he sighed. "This is the first time any officers have truly studied these remains. We don't know what caused it. Whether it was vandalism or an accident or one of those Mewtwo's Apostles. Our forensics team has been busy elsewhere. Of course, it's unlikely they'll be able to find anything. All of the evidence was likely burned with the house. There were no witnesses nor any surviving cameras. There were some cameras found, but none had any footage, and – if there was surviving footage – it was likely in Donavan Tower."

"Which is also a pile of rubble," I finished his thought. I frowned. "Sounds like whoever burned the house down also blew up the tower, right?"

"That's one of many theories," he replied. "We need evidence, but with all the chaos it's likely we'll have to believe this was simply a result of the war. If there's foul play, we won't be able to find out."

It was the defeat in his voice that prompted me to respond. "If… if I had some ideas, should I talk to you or Chief Harmen?"

"Chief Harmen has other matters to attend to," Miles replied, and then he regarded me curiously. "If you don't mind me asking, what ideas do you have?"

I hesitated. I didn't know if I should've risked giving a statement possibly casting suspicion on me. I glanced back at my classmates who were growing impatient. "Could… could we talk later?"

Miles nodded, sadness in his eyes. "Of course, son. If you wish to speak, I'm sure I'll be moving from here to the station for the next few days. Although I know you want to help, you should know that you are not required. You're a civilian trying to recover from the devastation; you do not need to assist us."

"I might need to," I muttered, glancing down. The rest of the small pile had crumbled to nothing. "I'll talk to you later when I have the time. I'm not crazy; I really think I could help."

"Of course, son." He said, and as I turned to leave he said, "And Arthur… I'm sorry that I couldn't protect you when I needed to. I was tasked with escorting you, and I failed."

I studied him carefully; there was nothing but regret on his face. "You surrendered when you had to," I replied, slowly. "You kept your men alive. I'm still alive and well. Your men are alive and well. You're alive and well. That's all that matters."

"It's not," Miles said gruffly, but he smiled nevertheless. "But thank you, son. Enjoy the rest of your time here. There's beauty to this city; it's been my home the entirety of my old life."

"I'm sure I'll find it. I'll see you soon." I gave him a small wave and returned to the crowd. I ignored the confused looks from my classmates as I pushed my way out of the sea. When my classmates joined me, they still had those same confused looks. "I hid in that house during the war. Hid with the owner, the woman who kidnapped me. Karen."

"So did you burn the house to the ground?" Connor asked, half-jokingly.

"I didn't," I insisted. "It was fine when I left, but apparently it burned to the ground that night."

"So if you didn't do it, why were you talking to the police?" asked Garrett.

"I kind of… want to know who did it," I answered.

"Why?" Thomas snorted. "Karen was married to that Greg guy, right? The one in the tower. You told us both of them died."

"They did."

"And… she kidnapped you. You're lucky you escaped! Why would you care?"

They seemed so interested that I was finally talking about the war. Their eyes were on me, even if they didn't care about my relationship with the Donavans. "Kidnap is just a really strong word for what happened. It wasn't that… restricting."

"Could you leave on your own?" asked Rebecca pointedly.

"No," I admitted.

"She kidnapped you."

"It's complicated," I said vaguely. "Honestly, I hated her for doing it at the time."

"Rightfully so," said Thomas.

"But thinking back on it, she saved me. If she hadn't interfered, Marcus…" I paused, my voice caught in my throat. I blinked, wondering why I couldn't finish that sentence. My body just wouldn't let me… The others shared worried looks, and I wondered what I looked like, trying to say just a few words.

"It's okay," Laura said softly, stepping forward. "Don't push yourself if you don't want to."

I shook my head. If I couldn't say what I was thinking, then I had to work around it. "…If Karen hadn't stopped me… something bad would've happened." I paused. Somehow the pause helped. "To me."

"She saved your life, then," Garrett concluded carefully. "And you appreciate her for it."

"Appreciation's strong," I said. "But that's the gist… I, uh, I just feel kind of responsible. I saw her die…" I paused, surprised I was able to say that so confidently. I hadn't thought about the rooftop in days. "And… it wasn't the best way to go. It's probably how… I…" I shook my head, hating that I was struggling so much.

"We understand," said Quinton. "We know what you're trying to say."

I inhaled deeply. "Sorry. I didn't realize it'd be this hard. I… I just feel responsible. Somehow." I giggled for some reason. "I don't think I'd be able to help much anyway, but I might as well. For her."

I stopped, my explanation concluded, waiting for them to respond. They stared back, looks of unease and uncertainty on their faces.

"Right…" Thomas stepped forward. "Shall we go, then?"

And so we went, thankful that the situation had passed. I wasn't sure about whether I would talk to the police about what I knew. If I was the last person to enter the home and confessed, I'd be the primary suspect. But after the conversation I had renewed purpose. Out of respect for what Karen went through, and to seek some closure on this mystery, I felt it was necessary. I'd talk to them when the tour was over and I had free time.

When I informed the others that continuing west would take our path passed the police station, Thomas requested that we moved back north. I was somewhat disappointed; I wanted to see how Chief Harmen had fared this past week. I'd thought a lot about his actions, and I decided that he was a man who was desperate for a war to end. He wanted the gangs to die to prevent another civil war, and he did terrible things to ensure that the gangs faded away. I forgave him, and I wanted him to know that.

But instead, we circled back to the Moemon Center, bypassing the Department Store entirely due to the renovations. The sky was a golden orange by the time our tour of the city ended. We had distracted ourselves for long enough, as the giant swarm of trainers desperate for healing had dissipated. The building itself was still nearly filled to capacity, but there was enough room for us all to enter. Finally, we managed to heal all of our Moemon and squeeze into a small corner the waiting room.

"Not going to lie," Jack chuckled. "During our walk, I was expecting someone to fight us while we were weak. I was nervous!"

Thomas clutched the table in frustration. "What is with those Cerulean officers?" He demanded to the floor. "Why were they glaring at us?"

"It's alright, man," Garrett said quickly. "Maybe they recognized us. Maybe they were glaring at everyone. We didn't get in trouble."

"This time," Thomas conceded. "But what if the next time we see them they decide to arrest us for what we did? What if they pull another gun on us?" He sighed and looked up to the ceiling. "Fuck… Guys, I'm sorry… I really hope you understand…"

"Of course we do," said Quinton. "We know what you and Arthur went through."

"I just… if those officers are going to stare at us every time they see us, I don't feel comfortable here." He looked frustrated with himself. "I think I'm going to leave soon."

Quinton and I shared a knowing glance.

"Are you planning on… leaving with Drew and Sam?" asked Connor.

"I need to ask them," Thomas answered, glancing at his watch. "They're still at the gym."

"Drew's still fighting?" asked Laura.

"Drew beat Erika twenty minutes ago," said Quinton.

"Way to call us," Jack muttered. "'Hey, guys, I beat her!' I mean, give us something. Don't ghost us."

"His conversation with Sam is clearly very important," said Garrett sarcastically.

"His team's still injured," Thomas noted. "They'll have to come back eventually. I'll talk to them then."

"I'll join you," offered Connor. "Honestly, this city isn't as exciting as I thought it'd be. Too much is roped off."

"I saw a ton of little shops that were open," countered Rebecca. "Just because we saw the highlights today doesn't mean we saw everything."

"I only really cared about the highlights," Connor shrugged. "Casino, burned down house, gym, police station, roped off ruins, roped off school, roped off department store. It's just disappointing."

Thomas tapped the table, bringing Connor's attention away from Rebecca's glare. "I appreciate it, man. I'd love to travel with you again!"

"Are you two sure you're ready to face Erika?" asked Max. "You have your strategies?"

Thomas and Connor nodded. "Although we should talk to Sam and Drew about that as well. No better teacher than experience," said Thomas.

We stayed at the Moemon Center for a few more hours discussing our journeys since we separated. I managed to avoid talking in detail about the war, and the others were understanding enough to avoid that unpleasant topic. We mainly repeated what we'd told each other before to fill time for our missing Challengers to arrive. But night fell, and Sam and Drew were still at the Center. Still no call from either.

We called them a few times, but they didn't answer. Finally, we gave up and searched for an apartment complex. Thankfully, there were several cheap rentals and we snagged a few rooms. We said our goodbyes and slept. It was another dreamless sleep.

When we woke up, we found out what happened to Sam and Drew. Quinton and I weren't surprised, but the others couldn't believe it. They healed up at the Center in the middle of the night and left the city. They'd already begun their journey to Fuchsia City.

They now led this fucking race.

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy


	25. Chapter 24: Connor

When I woke up and checked my watch, I felt a strange sense of satisfaction seeing their names heading down Cycling Road. Yeah, they were winning. But I was right! I saw their departure coming from miles away. And now they had the honor of having huge targets surrounding them at all times.

Good riddance; that was a handicap I never wanted again.

Christine slept next to me, so I nudged her shoulder. She groaned slightly as she struggled to stay asleep.

"Wake up," I whispered, nudging her again. "Since when am I the one who wakes up first?"

"Are we training?" Christine's sleeping whispers asked the window.

"Not yet," I replied, and she moaned in annoyance. "I didn't get your opinion."

But she shrugged the sheets tighter around her, so I looked over at the other bed. Rose and Olivia slept peacefully with Annie in between them. They looked so comfortable that I knew I'd feel horrible if I woke them. So I looked over at the single sofa chair sitting in the corner, where Bailey sat and stared at me unblinkingly.

Fortunately, I'd gotten used to waking up to Bailey's stares. I carefully slipped out of bed and crept over to her.

"What is it?" She asked.

"I wanted your opinion," I said, motioning toward the watch. "Before I ask the others."

"The others?" She repeated. "Us or them?"

I hesitated. "Both? The Challengers… They'd care more."

"Then you have your answer."

I frowned, undeterred. "Humor me. I know it's impossible for you, but you're part of this team and part of this competition. We're losing."

"Then if we're losing, we should stop losing."

I stared at her, not sure what I was expecting. Her cold eyes showed no interest in the watch; she hadn't even glanced at it. She stared at me and me alone. "Are you worried about me?"

Now she hesitated, and she finally blinked. "Not worried. I'm wondering if you know when our sixth will return."

I looked around the room. Stacy hadn't returned yet. Supposedly she was still with her family. "She'll come back when she needs to. I'm not worried about that. Are you?"

"Not worried," she repeated. I eyed her carefully. She certainly had bonded more with Stacy than any of the other Moemon. This was her way of expressing concern for her friend: cold, emotionless interrogation. "But she has no reason to stay with us now that she's found her family."

"With us?" I echoed, a smirk crawling up my face.

"With you," she corrected. Again, she blinked. "With this team of yours."

"Don't be worried about that," I assured her. "Stacy will return when we need her."

"Are we waiting to train until she returns?"

"No. It was just a long day yesterday. We have a Moemon Center to reliably use for the first time in nearly two weeks, so we'll start training soon."

"Not immediately?"

"I've got a few more distractions," I said, smiling. "Then we train."

That was the magic word. Christine woke up, yawning as she eyed us. "So we're finally doing it? We're finally going to evolve?"

"I haven't gotten your opinion on Sam and Drew leaving."

"Those two?" asked Christine, frowning. "I thought you all were sure they were going to leave."

"I was. I think the others still had hope they were going to stay a bit longer."

"But they left anyway. That means we're losing, right?"

"It's not about the competition," I said, sighing. "You all never seem to talk when I'm with the other Challengers."

"We don't care about the other Challengers," said Bailey simply.

"We care about the competition," added Christine. "We care about winning."

"Some of us," corrected Bailey pointedly. "Some simply want to survive long enough to leave."

I knew better than to believe her, but I suppressed a smirk to save face. "I don't suppose it's too much to ask for you guys to talk more with the others."

"Why would we?" asked Christine. "You said so yourself: they made themselves enemies when they decided to attack Olivia."

"I never said that," I insisted. "And they didn't attack Olivia." I paused, then I conceded. "I might as well have. Okay… I guess it is too much to ask."

"They'll leave soon," said Bailey. "We'll be alone able to train without them bothering us. That's all we need."

"Even if we're losing now, we'll catch up," said Christine, smiling determinedly. "We'll beat them. We'll show them they can't leave us behind!"

* * *

Not too much later, with our Moemon safely in their Moeballs, the Challengers still in the city met in a small diner away from the main road. The diner itself was filled with people due to having a celebratory "returning to the city" free breakfast, but some early birds managed to snag a large table and hold it for the rest of us.

I sat down amongst the earliest arrivals, and saw by the looks on their faces that news had already spread. None of them were happy, and Connor in particular looked furious.

"How are you feeling, Arthur?" asked Max, giving me a weak smile. "You look like you slept well."

I smiled proudly. "I had an amazing rest, thanks. And I'm doing as well as I can. I forgot how tiring it was to walk around this city, and we did it in an afternoon!"

"It's a huge city," Rebecca agreed, nodding. "Far too big for us to see everything." She looked pointedly at Jack. "We'll have to skip some things."

Jack nodded absentmindedly, absorbed by the small menu. He gave me a slight glance, and as his eyes returned to the paper they glazed over.

Eventually, the others arrived. We exchanged pleasantries, ordered, and made some small talk about our impressions of the city. It wasn't until the conversation died down that Connor finally spoke.

"How dare they?" He seethed. "What kind of game are they playing?"

We glanced at one another. "Is there something wrong?" asked Max curiously.

Connor looked up at him, his face contorted in rage. "Max, you saw your watch, right? You know where they are?"

Max hesitated, and then he nodded in confirmation. "Sam and Drew, then."

"Sam and Drew," Connor spat. "Unbelievable. They just left without a word. Without anything! They snuck off in the middle of the night!"

"They're cowards," agreed Thomas, shaking his head. "Just walking off like that. It's ridiculous!"

"Exactly!" Connor said. "It's ridiculous! Where do they get the right to just abandon us? They lied to us, too! They said they wouldn't leave for a few days!"

"I don't think either of them explicitly agreed-" said Laura.

"It doesn't matter! We all agreed to stay! Now they're racing ahead, and we're supposed to rush to catch up!"

"We don't have to rush," argued Garrett. "We're, what, a few hours behind at most? They barely slept, so we're basically even."

"A few hours could be the difference between victory and defeat!" said Connor. "All this effort wasted because we made the stupid decision to sleep!"

"Connor, it's not a big deal," said Max. "It'll be fine. We're in no hurry."

"We're losing," Connor said with finality.

"So what are you going to do?" I asked. It felt wrong to speak up. This conversation sounded eerily similar to something they likely had in Vermillion City when Quinton and I battled a gym leader and left in the middle of the night. Far too similar… "Are you going to stay or leave?"

Connor blinked at me, and then furiously tapped his watch. The watch rang once, twice, three times. Nothing. He growled at it and looked back at me. "No answer. They won't even talk to us."

"You haven't answered my-" I began, but Connor gave me a dismissive wave of his hand, pushed his seat out so hard it nearly tipped over, and stormed out of the diner.

"Wait, Connor!" Thomas said. "Shit… I don't know what he's going to do."

"He might leave you behind," joked Garrett. "Better follow him."

Thomas frowned. "Dude, I don't want to be put in this situation! I'd like to stay, too! But Connor and I talked a lot about our plans. If Drew and Sam really left, we'd have to leave as well."

"Then go for it," I said dismissively. "If you want to leave, leave. Don't feel obligated to wait for us."

Thomas gave me an apologetic smile. "You'll be fine. I'm not worried for you." He patted my shoulder, said goodbye to the others, and followed Connor.

That left the rest of us in an awkward silence. We looked from one another wondering who'd be the next to speak.

"So…" I said, feigning curiosity. "What are the rest of you guys planning? When will you be leaving?"

"I still need to train," said Laura, smiling reassuringly. "I need a few more days."

"I don't really need it, but it couldn't hurt," said Max.

"Honestly, Arthur, I might be leaving soon as well," said Garrett. He didn't look apologetic. I still remembered our talk ages ago. He truly wouldn't ever travel with me again. "Maybe by tomorrow night? Not sure. I don't want to fall behind if I can help it."

"That's fine, man. Like I said, don't feel obligated. It's still a competition."

"A stupid competition," Garrett said, and I couldn't help but smirk.

"And you two?" Max turned to Jack and Rebecca. The former had finally put the menu down and was frowning at the table. "You wanted to see the city?"

"My plans haven't changed," Jack said reassuringly. "I'll be staying and sightseeing a few more days."

Rebecca stared at him incredulously. "No we aren't." Her voice lowered. "We talked about this yesterday."

"We did," said Jack firmly. "We said we'd stay and walk around the shops."

"We decided that yesterday before we were told that the shopping district was roped off."

Jack raised his arms, gesturing to their surroundings. "Not everything's closed."

"Fine," she conceded, failing to hide her annoyance. "We'll spend today sightseeing. But tomorrow, we'll plan on leaving."

Jack frowned. "We still need to train as well."

"We don't have enough time. I guess we'll cut our sightseeing short."

Jack wasn't happy with that. As he gave his girlfriend a stern look, Laura coughed loudly. "Guys. Not at the table, please."

Quinton had been staring at his watch intently, barely listening to the argument. Suddenly, he smirked. "They're at the gym."

"Who?" asked Garrett. "Thomas and Connor?"

Quinton nodded slowly. "How?" Max asked, stunned. "Did they sprint across the city?"

"By how fast their names moved, it's likely."

With that, Rebecca got up suddenly. "Jack, please," she pleaded.

But Jack kept firm. "Bek, relax. We'll be fine."

Garrett got to his feet as well. "Okay guys. Sorry, but I'm sure you'll figure this out." He waved goodbye and left.

"Would you all please stop leaving!" said Max. "Our food's coming soon!"

Rebecca took Jack's hands. "Jack, please. We can't fall behind."

"We still need to train," replied Jack.

"Then let's go and train!"

"We still need to eat as well."

"We'll grab a snack along the way. Jack…"

Rebecca's pleading eyes finally softened him. Jack slowly nodded, defeated. "Okay guys. I guess our plans changed. Sorry…"

"Sorry," Rebecca said, barely containing her joyful satisfaction. "Seriously, guys, good luck! We won't leave yet, so you can still join us if you want to!"

Rebecca pulled Jack to his feet, and the pair waved at us before exiting as well.

"Then there was four," I said dramatically.

"Well, I'm hungry," Laura decided. "And I'm waiting. I want to make sure I'm ready before I fight Erika. I care more about my Moemon than this competition."

"I still want to learn more about this city," added Max. But even he looked saddened. "But I suppose I won't be here as long as I wanted."

"Oh Max…" Laura sighed. She stared at him intently. "When?"

Max shrugged. "Look at all these empty seats… this table was full not a half hour ago. Now everyone's racing off. I don't want to be left behind."

"Neither do I, but I don't have a choice."

"Garrett's heading South as well," Quinton informed us. "And Jack and Rebecca are heading West."

"That'll be seven of us," I noted. "More than half will have beaten Erika by the end of the day. We're the losing half."

"Don't say that," Max whimpered. "You'll make me feel more anxious about staying. Can we enjoy this meal, please? Avoid talking about the race."

"I think we can do that," said Laura.

We couldn't. When our meals were brought to us – and most of them were unfortunately sent back – we received a call from Connor. He and Thomas were at the gym facing Erika's trainers. They – in Connor's words – were giving us the courtesy of informing us they were leaving. He wished us luck, said they'd try to say goodbye to anyone along their way out of the city, but made no promises. And that ruined the conversation. We ate in silence for the remainder of the meal, awkwardly said goodbye, and went our separate ways.

I went to the Donavan house first. Another smaller crowd had gathered to watch three people in white decontamination suits scavenge. Assistant Chief Miles and the other officers had disappeared, so I had only one place that I could find them at. After watching the forensics team myself for a few minutes, I went west to the police station.

The makeshift barricade surrounding the station had been removed, and multiple police cars and government vans neatly lined the parking lot. The streets had been cleaned as well, although the bullet holes remained. Nobody patrolled the roof, and the floodlights had shut off. It looked like it should.

As I climbed the steps, the front door suddenly burst open and a pair of policemen followed by a pair of hospital workers sprinted out of the building. They took the steps two at a time before climbing into one of the nearby vans, slamming the doors closed, and speeding off down the road honking furiously. As I watched this spectacle, I caught the front door before it closed and walked inside once they disappeared.

While the façade looked normal, the inside looked like the war had never ended. Officers dodged around each other rushing chaotically around the building. People shouted at each other from across the room, and others typed furiously on computers. An older officer stood at the front and barked orders at younger men, his face purple with rage and a half-smoked cigar smoldering in his mouth. His words were indistinguishable from the cacophony that filled the room, but despite that the unfortunate young officers nodded rapidly in understanding and took off in random directions.

I made sure to avoid his gaze, making my way several small groups of officers on the other side of the room. I passed the hospital, only all of the beds had been removed and replaced with rows of computers. I also noticed that there were several non-officers: various nurses and firemen and even civilians scattered around the room. Because of their presence, nobody paid me any mind, and I managed to maneuver to the surprisingly empty back hallway.

I barely glanced at the doors leading to the branching rooms; I knocked loudly on Chief Harmen's office door. Nobody answered, or they answered so quietly I couldn't hear them over the noise. So I cracked the door open and knocked once again before poking my head inside.

The room had barely changed; its conversion to a private planning room had remained even after the war. The only significant difference was the large wooden desk sitting in the corner facing the blue-colored map of the city. Chief Harmen himself was the single soul occupying the room, sitting at the desk. His brow furrowed in concentration as he stared at a large computer screen, and he mouthed the letters he slowly typed.

I coughed loudly and rapped at the door, and that finally got his attention. He blinked at me for a few seconds, and then he grunted in recognition.

"Arthur," he said gruffly before he turned back to the screen. "Close the door. How have you been doing?"

I obeyed, stepping closer to his desk. I surveyed the room and found a stack of small metal chairs leaning against the wall. I took one, unfolded it, and sat on the uncomfortable thing. He certainly didn't sound like he cared, but I answered anyway. "Considering what happened, I'd say I'm doing well. I've been eating well, sleeping well, and I'm back with my classmates."

Chief Harmen looked at me again, this time with relief. "I'm glad to hear that," he said genuinely. "What happened to you… no one your age should've witnessed."

"Which part?"

"Everything. You should've left the moment the speech was interrupted."

I stared at him, not liking his lecturing tone. "Your men shouldn't have let me get kidnapped."

His eyes flashed regret, and then understanding. "I know. I could save one of you, but my men let two fall into the hands of those gangs."

"So I couldn't have left," I stated. "I didn't want to be there. I had to."

"You're right…" he let out a deep sigh. "I'm sorry. I forgot… it's been a long week."

"I know. You look like you aged twenty years. Just please don't lecture me about what happened. I wasn't in control."

"I won't. Again, I'm sorry." He took one more look at his computer screen, shook his head, and tapped a button. The screen faded to black, and he stepped away from his desk. "I suppose you want to talk about that night."

"There are a few things I want to talk about," I admitted. "That being one of them. But do you know where Assistant Chief Miles is? He had an investigation he was talking about."

He watched me with complete understanding. "I suppose you want to know who destroyed the Donavan legacy?"

"I just… might be able to help."

"It's a delicate issue. It is the only occurrence of arson the entire war, and the only victims are both dead and heirless. But it was under the protection of the police, and it was a deliberate attack against a rich and powerful man."

"Can I talk to you instead?" I asked.

"This is Miles' case," he muttered and pulled out a radio. "Assistant Chief Miles, are you available?"

Miles' voice crackled over the speaker. "I'm available, sir. Is it urgent?"

"Arthur is here to discuss your case."

"Ah, I saw him walking passed the house just a bit ago. I'll still be there if he has any information."

"He'll be there." Chief Harmen shut off the radio.

"I hope I'm not getting his hopes up," I admitted. "It isn't much…"

"Anything may help. The forensics team will likely determine the cause. But, again, this is Miles' case. This isn't why you sought me out." He stood up and walked over to the pile of chairs. He took one and placed it directly across from me. "It was an awful night, and many awful things were done."

"Not just that night," I said, watching as he sat down. "The entire war."

"Such is war. But the police kept out of it until there needed to be a winner." He paused suddenly, looking to the ground and grimacing. "As Challenger, you could've chosen a winner. You decided to remain impartial-"

"Are you saying that any of this is my fault?" I demanded sharply.

He held his hand out peacefully. "I didn't mean it like that. The last war, a Challenger made the decision, and we respected it due to Jared's esteem. You did not have the time nor desire to make your own decision, and again we respected it."

I scoffed. "Funny. I don't remember much respect from the countless people I told."

"I'm sure I didn't help, the way I reacted." He gave a small, empty chuckle. "I suppose I just wanted the responsibility not to fall on me. I've made too many terrible decisions, and this would've been the most devastating to get wrong."

"And did you?" I asked.

He looked up at me, studying me. "If the leadership remained throughout the war – if the Donavan Tower hadn't fallen – the outcome would've been quicker and more peaceful. I have no doubt Kevin, Greg, and Mary Beth would've come to the Celadon Gym if the fighting slowed into a stalemate. They respected one another and – despite what others say – they were honorable.

"But… the tower fell, and new leaders rose. Karen disappeared, and even if she surfaced I could never have convinced her to step down. Marcus – as you know far too well – was a crazed man. Kevin could've been convinced to step down as leader and disband the Kanto Kings. You may not believe it, but he considered the possibility greatly after the First Celadon War. Greg as well. I even recall Mary Beth mentioning it. All of us discussed it at one point and another…

"But Marcus became a crazed man beyond reason. He became the new leader of the Kanto Kings, and unfortunately there was no one else to claim the leadership role if he fell. If he won the war and became the de facto power in the region, the entire world would've suffered.

"Karen had no reason to continue leading. She was fierce, and her men respected her greatly, but she had no experience. She didn't care for Greg's political power; the Celadon Saviors would have no future.

"So there was no other choice. The police sided with Mary Beth's Moemon, because they promised to step down from power and disband the Mewtwo's Apostles officially. They would end the war and resign to remain in the shadows. It isn't the perfect outcome, but of the three it's certainly the most workable."

He stopped again, staring at me. His eyes were hardened yet tired; he seemed to be struggling with finally answering my question. "Did I make the right choice? Yes. It's for the benefit of the region. If Moemon gain power, then it's well-deserved. Humans never would've reached this point without their help and guidance."

He got to his feet, looking down on me. "I made a lot of decisions that final night. I killed several men, I watched several more die, and I sentenced Marcus and Karen to death. But the only thing I truly regret about that night was that you were there to see it all."

* * *

I headed toward the Donavan House feeling wholly unsatisfied and insulted. We didn't say anything else. He showed me the door without caring what I had to say next. And I simply left, confused and hurt by his words. What had I done to deserve that comment? I was innocent!

Along the way, my watch rang. "Hello?" I said absentmindedly, holding it to my face. "Who's this?"

"Who is this?" Connor's voice repeated, confused. "Didn't you see my name?"

"Not really…"

"Well, it doesn't matter. I just wanted to let you know that Thomas and I beat Erika, and we're heading out if you wanted to meet us."

"Can you stop by the burnt house?" I asked. "I'm heading there now, and I'm kind of in a hurry."

He hesitated. "Well… we're already at the entrance."

"Oh… then… good luck."

There was a pause, and then Thomas' voice came through. "Hey man, are you okay? We saw you were in the police station. You didn't get in trouble."

"No. I was just talking with someone I met during the war."

"You sound confused."

"I'm fine."

"Well… we'll see you soon, I hope. In Fuchsia or Saffron or wherever you catch up. Good luck!"

"Goodbye, Arthur," Connor added, and then he hung up.

I checked my watch. Nobody else had stopped by the entrance. If only they'd waited a few more minutes, I'd have finished with Miles and headed over there. Now I looked like an asshole, although judging by the lack of well-wishers I wasn't the only one. Laura and Garrett were still in the city – and Max was close by the entrance – but nobody moved. They at least gave us plenty of warning, but nobody gave them the courtesy of saying goodbye in person.

This competition had changed us all for the worse.

* * *

Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Bailey the Banette

Quinton:

Melody the Metang

Wendy the Quagsire

Lucia the Lucario

Willow the Sudowoodo

Mary the Flaaffy


End file.
